Naval Academy
by Idealize
Summary: Admirals are made, not born. Before assuming their posts at a naval base, an aspiring admiral must go through the Yokosuka Naval Academy, which trains students in the ways of the admiralty, however, there are some things that are best unknown. Follow an oddball's journey through the stepping stone towards the title that is "Admiral." AU.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N**

 **I've read way too many Light Novels, watched too many Anime's**

 **I tried.**

Yokosuka Naval Academy.

Every admiral you may encounter around Japan has known this academy ever since its construction. Initially built to teach naval crewmen and aspiring admirals about the tactics, strategies, and basics of modern naval warfare, this has changed with the emergence of mysterious naval personnel being operated by the JMSDF.

The Shipgirls.

Now, not only does the academy teach the aspects of modern naval warfare, but also the aspects of operating a naval base filled with these so-called shipgirls through simulations. And even then, it doesn't end there. Aspiring admirals are taught the basics of firearms handling, close quarters combat, artillery operating, ship-commanding, and lastly…

Kantai Collecting.

You heard that correctly.

"Kantai Collecting", or, Fleet Collecting for the sake of the gaijins, has been the name of the process of actually collecting the ship-cards given out by the academy in their simulations, either by their Simulation Mission drops, "Quest" rewards, or Construction. Ship cards are used to represent the actual shipgirls themselves, which are stationed at Yokosuka, meaning, meeting these girls in the flesh wouldn't be uncommon, but some of them have high standings among academy students, including the battleship Bismarck. The academy reflects this observation by allowing students to only get her by going through the most wasteful and luck-based process in both mysterious Shipgirl development and Shipcard collecting:

Large Ship Construction.

For both the naval base Admiral and an aspiring Admiral's case, Large Ship Construction, better known as LSC, is a risky but tempting task to do, because, true to its name, it takes up a lot of the naval base's resources, and, not only does the ship's rigging or shipgirl he aims for have a slim chance to actually appear, there's a chance that he might get duplicate riggings or shipgirl instead, which may leave a bad taste after wasting 6000 fuel.

Riggings are a shipgirl's main weapon, to be precise; riggings are what **defines** a shipgirl. When an admiral recovers, receives, or constructs a rigging, it is only a matter of finding the right user to bring it to effective use. Chosen users are then equipped with the riggings and commissioned as Class-K naval personnel, to be enlisted as part of the naval base as "special personnel". That's what it says on paper, at least.

The shipgirl's origins are still cloudy because of its high-clearance level, but not as cloudy as the origin of the Abyssal Ships, or simply called the Abyss, which was determined to be humanity's common enemy. They began appearing sometime around 2012, where they attacked San Diego, Pearl Harbor, Yokosuka, Kure, Vladivostok, and a lot more naval bases. Humanity was on the ropes after this shock-and-awe attack reminiscent of Pearl Harbor '41, most ships were either destroyed or left outright useless afterwards. The economy was tipped out of balance, merchant shipping was no longer possible, and the abyss were closing in on the shores, not only did their vessels pack incredible punches, they were able to traverse land as well, as was the case in Normandy and Brest, though they were still vulnerable to land-based artillery fire, so they were driven back, however, their threat remained undeniable.

On March 2013, after collecting enough data from captured specimens and other recovered artifacts, Japan made the first riggings through unknown means. There were five constructed by this time, and, oddly enough, were both named and based after WW2 warships, Murakumo, Sazanami, Fubuki, Inazuma and Samidare. The rest of the blueprints, which included newer, heavier rigging designs, were supposed to be shipped out to other production companies like Mitsubishi, and even to other countries like Russia, but unfortunately, the ship, which carried all of the blueprints for the different riggings, got bushwhacked near the Japanese coast. The ship and the crew were untouched, but the blueprints? Gone.

And the developers didn't have extra copies.

So on April 2013, Yokosuka had to deal with it and chose the five rigging's users, then sent them out on an area around Japan called Sector 1-1, and the results were greater than expected. Mobility? Power? Check. But, as they finished off the last of the abyssal vessels, the Shipgirls found something peculiar near one of the destroyer's carcass.

A rigging.

There was a cruiser-class rigging inside the destroyer.

Thus, it was concluded that the abyss had integrated rigging technology to their own, and that there is a chance for enemy vessels to drop shipgirl riggings, which was definitely odd. However, Yokosuka high command wanted more high-output ships like battleships and carriers, thus, the naval base crew was forced to construct ships the hard way…

Guessing.

Inputting a random amount of resources; steel, ammo, fuel, bauxite, then allowing the developers to construct it… it was definitely a game of luck. You could say that the entire process was like a video game's RNG in real life. One shot, one built. Pure luck, no skill.

During the Academy's founding, all of these situations were taken into account and included in their curriculum, to simulate "the life within the Admiralty". Over time, the academy had built different "sections" named after historical bases, like Kure, Buin, Tawi—Tawi, etc. As such, Yokosuka Naval Academy's campus encompasses a very wide area near the Naval Base itself, as observed first-hand by a young man, wearing the academy's standard white uniform which have bronze button-like ornaments on the left and right sides of the torso, similar to those worn by an actual Admiral, and donning the academy's hat as well, wearing it on his black, downward-spiky hair, which, surprisingly, is still within academy regulations. Letting his arm rest on the white-and-red hilted katana sheathed on his waist, he starts to walk towards the academy's main building with his duffle bag slung around him, preparing for a new chapter in his life.

As he strolls by the fountain in the middle of the pathway, he notices the academy's common school atmosphere on its grounds. Men playing catch, young couples talking to each other, friends laughing to a hilariously bad pun, it was almost as if the strict nature he had heard about the school was not real. That's what you get for listening to rumors, it seems.

Miyamoto, Shiro. 23 years old, 6'1. Born to a family of both samurai and naval officers, he intends to follow on the footsteps of all of his ancestors. He intends to do that by bringing the glory of the sword once more in this firearm-run world. According to him, the sword is greater than the gun, but in this time and age, one can kill or incapacitate a man with a single effortless pull of a trigger, without the target knowing what hit him until he's dead. But back in the old days, men had to duke it out at close range with swords with their honor at stake, and he intends to follow those ways, although those ideals of his might've been influenced by all those light novels he's been reading recently. Usually a silent, arrogant-looking novel-reading oddball at times, but, one may observe that he starts to show his true, less-condescending self once within range of acquaintances.

He goes underneath the huge arch on the building's entrance and heads straight for the lobby, where a desk attendant is standing near a very executive-looking counter, with chromed edges and gray-matted surfaces. This makes him wonder… is this really a school or a first-class hotel? Looking at his rear, he spots a few students carrying their own duffle bags as well, it's the first day of school after all, and surely, most of the new students here would choose to apply for a dorm room, considering this academy's reputation when it comes to all of their facilities. He then lines up behind the counter… but still, the prospect of going to school again bugs Shiro a bit.

"It's as if 16 years wasn't enough." He utters to himself. As he looks up, he is greeted by a cheerful-looking woman behind the counter with a smile, which kind of warms up Shiro a bit. The woman then greets the now-flustered Shiro.

"Good morning, sir!" She states, while doing a small bow. "A new student, I presume? What can I do for you today?"

"I-I was hoping to retrieve my dorm keys…"

"Of course, sir. Can I have your name, please?"

Shiro, feeling a bit awkward about saying his full name, hands her his ID card instead. "Eh… uhm… here." He utters as he hands out the ID.

"Eh… let's see… Mi… ya… mo… to… Shi… ro… Please wait sir, I'll have to run it through."

As the attendant searches for Shiro's records, he hears a few mumbles on his rear, and notices that there's already a line-up of fresh students behind him, ready to pick up their dorm keys as well. One of them catches his ear…

"The hell's this guy doing with a sword… I know there's CQC training in here but, ain't that too flashy?"

"Hey… you never know, that guy must have some Bankai stuff or something." Another one responds, with both of them laughing afterwards.

 _Keep it calm… Miyamoto… don't let them get to you… I'll show them the true power of the sword… someday…_

"Nah, in all seriousness though… I think a knife works better." The same two men still continue their conversation, not knowing that Shiro is listening.

"Why're you telling me? tell that to the guy himself…"

"I don't want to."

"What a pussy you are."

"Hey, it's called picking your battles, you idiot." Shiro chuckles a bit at the other guy's last remark, then the attendant calls for his attention.

"Uh… sir? One of your roommate's already in your dorm room, but you each have separate keys, so here." The attendant hands over both his key and ID card, and Shiro stows it away on his pocket. "Oh, almost forgot, sir. Here's a guidebook sir. The rest should be self-explanatory, so it only contains the most important details.

"Thanks." Shiro replies with a bow with the guidebook on his hand, as he heads out in the direction of the sign saying "Dorms.". As he arrives to another open field, he sits down one of the benches adjacent to another fountain similar to the one at the entrance, and opens up the guidebook.

WELCOME TO THE YOKOSUKA NAVAL ACADEMY!

Thank you for choosing us. (Not that you have a choice in this line of work :P)

"How informal…" he comments.

A map of the campus is located on the last pages of this guidebook, along with schedules, depending on your section.

This academy's curriculum contains the following (with their explanations on corresponding pages.)

Close Quarters Combat (CQC) Training – Page 2.

Weapons Handling Training – Page 4.

Linguistics – Page 6.

Related Histories (WW1-2 and events.) – Page 9.

Shipgirl Commanding and Naval Base Management – Page 12.

Maps and Schedules – Page 25.

"I could probably gloss over the rest of those… I just have to focus on the Shipgirl commanding portion. Maybe later." He utters to himself as he stands up from the bench, hoisting up his duffle bag once more, and heads on towards the dorm area. Looking at the glass-covered nametag on his key, he identifies his room number, 401. Strange number, since the building he's looking at doesn't seem to be able to contain that may rooms…

"Ah wait, that's just a storeroom…" Shiro scolds himself after failing to notice the rightwards arrow on the "dorms" sign, which was adjacent to the storeroom. He looks to his right, only to see a huge hotel-like building, with the backs of air conditioner exhaust fans protruding out.

"Yup. Definitely not a hotel."

He then proceeds, again, to the proper dorm area this time, and upon arriving inside the lobby, he immediately notices the hotel-style elevator up front, making him laugh a bit, which grabs the attention to those around him. Clearing out his throat two times to hopefully get rid of the awkwardness, he enters the elevator by himself, as the only ones currently in the lobby were the servicemen. Taking a wild guess and pressing the 4th floor button through intuition, he puts down the duffle bag and takes a second to think about what his room would look like, and how his roommates act like. As his mind drifts to idle thoughts, the elevator dings, and the doors open. Quickly picking up the duffle bag, he moves out of the elevator, and glances on the first door of the row, 400.

"Nice." He utters, having chosen the right floor. He then moves in closer to his room, 401, and notices that the door is slightly opened. Pushing it in to open it further, he then takes a peek inside, but what he sees is something… peculiar, to say the least.

It's a black-haired girl.

And she's wearing nothing but lingerie.

"F-fuck!" Shiro thinks to himself, getting his head out of the door, letting out a slight creak, then presses himself against the small wall between the 400 and 401 rooms .

"Nonononono. I know this one. I know this situation. It's too obvious. I can't fall for it. No. I won't let my life be reduced as that of a generic dense harem protagonist! I-I still have a way out… L-let's see… why's she in my room? Or, is this really my room? My key number…am I really in 401? Or am I 104? No… it looks strange when it's flipped, so it's 401… next is the door… no good, it really is 401… wait… could I have been hallucinating? T-true… I haven't eaten lunch yet… let me just take another peek and…" As he takes another peek, he is, once again, surprised at what he sees.

A face.

An absolutely beautiful face.

The woman from earlier, now wrapped with a towel was apparently tipped off by the small creak… now, the towel-clad woman is right in front of him, her black hair still a bit wet, glistering with small drops of water, along with an amazingly nice scent of cologne, which leaves Shiro quite speechless, and the only thing he could utter was…

"Eh?"

" **KYAAAAA!** " The girl shouts, drowning out the ambience in the floor, then, a huge slap is heard, delivered straight to Shiro's right cheek, courtesy of the aggressive woman. His head turns at least 35 degrees from the sheer force of the slap itself, then, the door gets shut, and the lock clicks. A laugh can be heard coming from the back, and as Shiro turns, he discovers that it is the director of the school himself, Mr. Yoshiro. The pipe-carrying director laughs a bit, before saying something.

"Quite a scream that was… and quite a slap, too."

"I know that all too well, sir."Shiro responds while rubbing his right cheek with his glove-covered hand, making the director laugh once more, afterwards, inhales his pipe's smoke.

"Y-you were the one peeking on me earlier, weren't you? Y-you pervert!" The black-haired girl utters from behind the door, much to the shock of Shiro, since that single statement could get him expelled. He can still smell that fresh shampoo scent, the same scent that he sensed as he peeped through the door.

"You're wrong! I-it wasn't intentional! S-sir, I-I can explain! I-"

 _Shit… this is getting way into familiar territory. I better stop this before my school life turns into a cliché…_

"No need, kid. I was doing my rounds and I saw you crouching like you were Solid Snake or someone similar." Director Yoshiro then points to his keychain. "I know this is your room, kid, and I can tell from your face that you're not the… lecherous type."

"W-what? H-how can I sleep properly when one of my roommates is a pervert! Not to mention he's a guy! A-and just look at that sword! Who in their right minds would use such outdated weapon!?"

"Insult me all you want, but don't you dare insult my sword-"

"Director! Isn't there some kind of mistake here? Or is it your intention to let boys and girls sleep together?"

"This school prides itself in teaching its students responsibility, milady."

"Milady?" Shiro asks, curious of the reasons for the director's choice of words.

"Ah, it seems you don't know each other yet, though somehow, I actually know both of you."

"Why's that?" Shiro once again asks.

"Probably because you're a notorious pervert back in your school…"The girl adds with a laugh at the end.

"And probably because you wrongfully blamed others to death."

"Calm down, you two, the reason why I know both of you is because you came from well-known families, and you also have some peculiar records and histories."

"Is that so? Then how many counts of voyeurism does this indecent man have?" The girl, slightly shorter than Shiro, is now wearing her own standard uniform emerges from the door, her black hair falling freely down behind the white clothing, and her chest being visibly… flat.

"Hey I tol-, you know what, it's useless. Please go on, director, who's the over-reacting ironing board?" Shiro replies out of sheer frustration and annoyance, while leaving behind a teasing remark.

"Who are you calling flat, huh!?"

"Calm down, Hikari, he's right, you don't usually get mad at stuff, you know?"

"Director, you don't understand!"

"Hi…kari?" Shiro mutters.

"Yes." The director answers upon hearing Shiro muttering. "The girl in front of me is Ozawa Hikari, gifted, excellent grades, brilliant tactician, and also got full marks on the entrance exam; you could say she's an exemplary student."

"There they go again with all that "brilliant" stuff…" The black-haired girl utters to herself, a bit agitated

"You should also know that the Ozawa's are well-renowned for their service in the Japanese Navy." The director continues.

"I know, sir. One of them was at Leyte Gulf, if I remember correctly. I wonder how she compares to them."

"Hey! I'll have you know that I'm as good as my ancestors when it comes to naval warfare!" Hikari arrogantly utters with her head held high and her right fist on her chest.

"I can at least believe that. You even look like an aircraft carrier, or its flight deck, at least."

"Shut up! And who the hell are you anyway, to be talking like that to someone of my standing?!"

"Allow me to introduce you, kid." The director butts in. "Miyamoto Shiro, average grades, flunked Math, but finished the entrance exam with a score of 86%. The only parts he didn't get right were the arithmetic parts, displacement measurement and others. "

"That's a lotta details." He responds, amazed by the accurate statistics stated by the director.

"I'm the director, it's my job."

"Whether he's a smart or a flunked pervert doesn't change anything!"

"Well then, how do you suppose we solve this prob- eh, annoyance, Director? It doesn't matter if I have to change rooms."

"As much as possible I'd like the two of you to stick together, but since it's come to this… how about a game of rock-paper-scissors? Whoever wins gets to decide what happens to the other."

"It's just a game of luck, director! We need something that clearly proves my dominance!" The prideful Hikari responds.

"Dominance… Ah! How about you guys participate in the first-day Opening Duel? Since we've already gauged your academic aptitudes, we're going to test your physical ones through CQC and small-arms handling. It'll also affect your rank in the school as well; where we'll base which section you'll be in, that should help you out a bit, Shiro. Well, how about it? I'll give you guys the first match today, if that's fine with you."

"Sure thing!" Hikari utters with great confidence, raising her fist towards Shiro. "I'll beat this pervert ten times over!"

"It's tiring, but at least I'll have a chance to make you stop saying I'm a pervert after this match. Let's do this, then." Shiro responds this time, bumping his fist into Hikari's.

"H-hey, who said you could touch me!?" She responds, a bit flustered and blushing.

"Oh, come on, it's just a symbol of agreement. It's better than me shaking your hand. For you, that is."

"I-I guess… H-hey, where do you think you're going! The match hasn't even started yet! You're still not allowed in there!" Hikari protests as Shiro heads inside the room, taking his duffle bag along with him, sighing a bit tiredly.

"At least let me put my bags in there for a while."

"F-fine then!"

"Are you two done? Well, meet outside the school grounds after an hour. I'll be heading off now to prepare the gym, kids. Have fun." The director interjects, waving around his pipe, as the two students pay their respects through a bow.

"Man, I'm hungry. Hey, uh, wanna go grab something to eat?" Shiro asks the black-haired Hikari awkwardly, who immediately responds.

"E-eh? W-why are you asking m-me that?"

"Well, uh, I was hungry and, maybe you, uh, wanted some-"

"L-like I'll ever need something from you!"

"Eh… for once I was just trying to be kind here… ah well. What did I expect, anyway?" Shiro replies with a wave of his hand, as he walks off the area towards the canteen, leaving Hikari a bit agitated and flustered.

"Nobody's ever… invited me to lunch…" she thinks.

 _There goes my little side-mission, down the drain._

Shiro, now riding the elevator, thinks for a bit when he feels his stomach growling; however, as he begins to fantasize the menu and the food he'll be eating, he notices something.

 _Now that I think about it… didn't I just fall into one of those clichés? Shit! Now I have to go face off against another student_ on _my first day… not to mention that I'm up against a girl… well, there goes my chances of keeping a low profile. Now I'll be made a headline even if I win or lose…_

The somewhat-worried Shiro , now outside the lobby, walks straight through the pathway with his mind wandering about, thinking of the possible outcomes of the duel. True, when it comes to CQC, he has a great chance of winning, but he doesn't know Hikari's strengths and weaknesses at all. And as a man who firmly believes that failing to prepare is preparing to fail, it's a very tough situation to be in.

However, this was also the situation of those on the battlefield.

Men fought without knowing their enemy's capabilities, which were found to be beyond anything anyone has built… until now.

The Japanese situation with the abyss was much like those who first experienced the power of gunpowder first-hand, those who were on the wrong side of the barrel.

However, humans adapt, and will rise to the challenge, as seen with the Shipgirl project and automatic weapons.

If Shiro cannot surpass this battle, then surely, he cannot consider himself a true Miyamoto.

His attempts for subtlety have been completely and utterly shattered by this duel, now, he must at least bring pride to both his name, and the sword.

This puts his other desires and objectives a step down in priority.

Despite knowing that there was a CQC portion in this academy, he's never thought that he'd make a mark as the first one to either lose or win a duel.

Against a girl.

Whether or not he wins leaves a definitely bad aftertaste. If that's the case, he'll just have to charge through with a win.

But he never expected that he'd become such a well-known personality at school, which, after this duel, is most likely a given, win or lose.

He's only agreed to go to this academy for one thing:

A shot at destroying the Abyss.

Become an admiral and avenge your comrades by leading the Shipgirls to victory; that is all.

 _Maaan, I wonder what Erika's going to think of me if she saw me like this._

A lot of Miyamoto's have participated as volunteers in the fight against the Abyss. Most of them were placed on coast watch, manning the artillery, while some were stationed in the JMSDF's remaining ships. Needless to say, a lot of Shiro's relatives and clan-members fell during the initial defense, but what hit him most was Erika's disappearance.

Erika Miyamoto.

A tomboyish, blond-haired and well-shaped half-German member of the Miyamoto clan; who Shiro's been with since their childhood. Erika was two years older than the young, hot-blooded Shiro, and despite their close, sibling-like relationship, they weren't actually blood-related. Mighty convenient, but that's not the case here.

In truth, she was the one who made Shiro attached to the old-fashioned _katana_ , which happened when they were wandering through the Miyamoto mansion in their childhood days; even then, Shiro would usually carry a katana longer than him around, and would refer to himself as what a samurai would, or, more accurately, _did,_ in an extremely old-fashioned but polite manner.

It was not until Erika teased him for it that he stopped using it. What he didn't know is that the girl was actually doing him a favor, since should he have went to elementary school with that accent, well, he's gonna get hurt. A lot.

Erika was with Shiro for the longest time than any other friend he's had, despite not being blood-related, they were family. Family, in the sense of both clan and history, one could not merely imagine what Shiro, now graduated from college, felt when the ship Erika was serving on, the JS Atago, went MIA, and her sister along with it, with only the Abyss to blame. She was 23 at that time, and the last time Shiro ever saw her was his graduation party at the mansion, a couple of months before the abyssal appearance.

Despair. This was the only thing Shiro could feel for the past year, separating himself from the rest of society, living with only the basics and staying almost an entire year inside the mansion, backtracking to the places where he and Erika once played at, with nothing but the sense of desolation and a hunger for revenge. His mother and father, both serving in the Navy as well, tried to get him out of this state, but he didn't do so only until recently, which explains his awkwardness to Hikari. As he looks back on his past, he didn't notice that he's arrived at the open-air food court. He then goes near one of the stalls, where the staff greets him with a smile.

"Well, what's on the menu…. Eh… I'm just going to go with beef soup over rice today."

"Okay, sir! Pick a number and sit down at one of our tables!"

And Shiro does so. Taking a seat at one of the wooden benches adjacent to a medium-sized wooden table, he places his number-signage down near the edge of the table and patiently waits for his food to come as he takes out his phone. A black, blue-outlined touchscreen smartphone fully equipped with an unused camera, game applications, and a barren communication system. The only real use he's got for it as of now is to check the time.

 _1414 huh, peculiar. Wait, I haven't even eaten lunch, and it's already 2 o clock? This isn't good. Even if I lived with cans and noodles for almost a year, at least I observed proper mealtimes!_

"Uh, sir? Here's your order." A servicewoman utters as she places a bowl of beef soup and a plate of rice o the wooden table in front of Shiro, who immediately responds with a "Thank you." As Shiro looks closer, the servicewoman looks pretty young, and her tinted hair doesn't help deny that. If she wore the school's uniform, he'd probably mistake her for a student, being the oddball he is, it intrigues him a lot.

"Uh… sir? I-is there… something… on my face?" The woman, noticing Shiro's been staring at her for a few seconds, inquires.

"Ah, no, no. I'm just looking at your… pretty face."

 _OH SHIT, WHY DID I JUST SAYYYY THATTTT!?_

"E-eh? T-thank y-you…" The blue haired girl responds while visibly blushing, holding down her service tray near in front of her chest in an effort to hide the embarrassment. Shiro feels that he can't salvage the situation, and just goes with it.

"A-ah sir, a-any o-other orders?" She asks, unable to even speak straight.

"Yes, a cola would be nice."

"Okay!" She responds again, still blushing while running with haste back towards her stall. Shiro notices this and makes a little remark in his thoughts as he chows down on the beef alongside the soup-doused rice.

 _She's actually pretty cute. I shouldn't forget to ask her name later. Maan, I haven't done anything like this since high school._

The girl then returns with a can of cola in her hands, making Shiro feel quite uneasy. He could've gone near the stall and picked up the cola himself instead; letting someone else do such a menial task for him feels wrong.

"Ah, thanks." He utters, receiving the can from the servicewoman. "Ah, wait a bit. If I may ask, ehh… what's your name?"

 _Oh boy, that came off_ _ **kinda**_ _weird._

"I-it's Aya. Hiiragi Aya."

 _Didn't think she'd answer me…_

"Aya, huh. Nice name, it fits well with you, I guess." Shiro utters, scratching the back of his head along with a smile.

 _I know that well since I watched KinMoza while I was locked in my room! Now, I just need to stop making stuff worse! I still have a duel!_

"T-thank y-you… uhh…"

"Call me Shiro, if you want. Uh, it may seem weird, but are you free right now? I'd like to talk with you for a bit. Just here." He utters as he finishes up his food.

 _What the hell am I doing? Well… I guess I know. I'm_ _ **trying**_ _to make a friend here, though this seems weird. Must be all the years I've been locked inside my room kicking in._

"Y-yes…"

 _Good, she accepted it. At least I don't have to bear with embarrassment…_

"U-uh, may I ask, are you a student here as well?"

"Y-yes… I work part time on the stall…"

 _So that explains her appearance. And I just found me a way to get outta here without any more embarrassment!_

"Answering a question from a weird guy you've just met… T-thanks… All of this may really seem weird to you, yet… you still tried to answer me so… yeah, thanks!"

"I-I don't think you're weird… Shiro… I feel that… you're having a hard time with people… somehow… Ah! Sorry! I shouldn't be talking like that…"

 _Oh man. She got me, and that hesitating expression of hers… what is this… feeling?_

"No worries, you were spot on though. Can you read, like, body expressions, or something like that?"

"N-no… I just… felt it…"

 _Man, she's so cute from this angle… just look at her, blushing, holding and combing that nice, blue hair of hers… Wait, the hell am I thinking, I sound like a narrator… But nonetheless, that shy attitude of hers is definitely doing… something to me. This feeling… I haven't had this for a long time… so… I don't want to run away. I want to get closer… I need… one… last… push._

"Whatever it was, you were right about me… Thanks, Aya. For answering and even talking to a weird guy like me. Ah, t-this may seem weirder than before, b-but you've been answering all of my weird stuff lately… so… Aya… can I b-be y-your f-fr… f-fri…"

"Oi, Aya, what are you doing, get back to work!" A voice rings out from the stalls, and Aya panics a bit.

"Y-yes! C-coming!" She says as she runs a bit slowly.

 _Psh… In the end, even after doing all that weird shit… I still wasn't able to make a friend…_ Shiro thinks as he starts to head back towards the grounds for the duel, leaving behind some cash.

"Ah, Shiro-san!"

"Hm?" He turns back to see Aya, with her soft-looking blue hair being blown by the wind, her cute, timid face still blushing madly, and then waving her hand, looking at him directly then closing her eyes and smiling.

"O-of course… I'll be your friend!" Shiro smiles at this prospect. After being shut off for a year, one of his "hidden agendas" for going to school once more has been fulfilled, making a friend.

 _I did it._

"Thanks, Aya!" He responds, as he starts walking out of the food court with some odd determination to win the duel against Hikari.

"B-because… I was once like you… Shiro-san." Aya whispers to herself.

After awkwardly making a new friend through the weirdest means ever known by man, Shiro walks towards the open grounds near a small, closed-area gym to prepare for the duel, but he notices a crowd of students waiting outside the gym. Whispers from the crowd can be heard as Shiro marches closer.

"That's him."

"He's the other first, yeah?"

"That guy carrying the sword? Yeah, he's the other one to fight."

"What's up with that sword?"

"Yeah, does he think he's some samurai or something?"

"Don't tell me he's got some Reiatsu on that thing."

 _Calm down… Shiro… A true man never gets provoked. Anyway, I'm in a good mood today, despite this… duel or whatever._

"Oi, Shiro!" Director Yoshiro shouts, calling his attention. "Hikari's already inside, come on!" The two men then enter the debris-riddled gym through a back door, and a couple of other spectating students follow suit, who decide to climb up the bleachers for a better view, one of these students is actually Aya, who signed off from part-time work early to see the match.

"What took you so long, you pervert!?" Hikari shouts from the other edge of the court, causing a ruckus among the spectators.

"What, the other guy's a pervert? Damn. Doing something like that on the first day…"

"Heh, yeah. Guy's got balls."

Even more whispering can be heard.

"Hey, stop ruining my reputation." Shiro, fed up, shouts, although a bit unmotivated at that.

"Alright you kids, let's get this show on the road!" Yashiro finally utters, standing on the elevated platform near the edge of the court. "Let me introduce our _Firsts_ for this year! On the left side is Ozawa Hikari! On the right it Miyamoto Shiro! Both are considered to be interesting students in this line of work, so keep your eyes peeled! You seniors might want to take a look as well! "Yoshiro takes a pause as the spectators clap.

"With that said and done, we'll start with the first part, close quarters combat! You'll be equipped with our newest CQC suits to identify hits! A confirmed hit will be signified when the suit glows red! Hikari, what will your weapon be"

"Dual military-grade tactical knives."

"Nice choice! What about you, Shiro? I have an idea of what you'd answer, but I'd like to ask you just in case."

"Shouldn't it be obvious, director? I would like to use a katana."

"Okay then! Take off your personal weaponry and wear the CQC suits! Your weapons will be provided to you shortly by our staff." Shiro and Hikari then equip the state-of-the-art full body CQC suits, which are made from gray-colored lightweight but strong alloys, which contain pressure detectors and LED lights for hit indicating to protect the user within. The helmet is also made up of the same alloys, but has a clear visor on the front face, allowing the user to see ahead clearly. Any blunt hit received by the alloy will almost always be rendered harmless to the user itself, while still allowing high mobility.

"Good, looks like you're weapons are here. Hikari will be using dual tactical knives, a common choice of weaponry for Special Operation Units around the globe. It's swift and deadly, with its size designed for swift mobility. Meanwhile, Shiro will pick the odd choice by choosing to wield a katana; however, don't be fooled by its looks. Despite being outclassed by knives in terms of speed and mobility, it will still hurt a lot when used properly by an expert, and not just some guy flailing a medieval-age weapon. It's good for slashing and cutting anything in half, but with training, one should be able to do more than just that." Yoshiro pauses for a bit, then continues.

"These replica weapons are built from the same alloy your suits are made of, their edges are blunt, since after all, we're just simulating. Anyway, for the scoring, hitting the foot and arms are 1 point, torso is worth two, disarming and striking the head's worth three. Whoever gets 10 points first wins this part. You'll be fighting in a "Crash" environment, tons of small debris, optimal for close quarters."

Yoshiro then coughs; inhales some smoke, and then speaks again.

"Are you ready? Alright! Let's gain victory in the dawn's horizon!"

A loud horn can then be heard. The duel's already begun. Shiro holds his katana firmly, as Hikari aggressively pushes through the debris swiftly with her mobile tactical knives. The black-haired girl's footsteps can be heard getting closer by the slow-paced Shiro, who's walking around his part of the gym. The footsteps stop, and he remembers the last direction it came from, west.

Without warning, Hikari charges in from debris located in the west, her tactical knives held in backwards grip as she runs in closer. Shiro notices this and holds his katana in front of him, preparing for Hikari's approach. As the dual-wielding girl steps to her right, she goes for a slash with her right knife, but Shiro backsteps with his left foot and strikes her right thigh with a precise slash of his own, making it glow bright red and earning a point.

"Shit. He got me." Hikari exclaims as the crowd cheers on.

"You weren't possibly thinking that I'd lose with that, were you?" Shiro teases, remembering the stipulations of the match.

"O-of course not! T-that was just a w-w-warm up, yeah!"

"I'll take your word for it. Come on then. Show me what you got."

"Oh! It looks like it's heating up in there!" Yoshiro commentates, looking at the hanging big screen in the middle of the court.

Hikari once again lunges in as Shiro finishes talking. She moves faster than before, managing to get below Shiro quickly, however, her consecutive slashes were easily evaded by the swordsman, stepping back with both feet to evade Hikari. She then goes in deep with a stab aimed at Shiro's torso; however, he notices the badly-timed stab and side-steps out of the way, hitting her head with another precise strike afterwards. Hikari gets frustrated at this, and launches a very badly executed move, which Shiro effortlessly evades once again, and this time, disarms her with two swift yet precise strikes to the edges of the knives. After disarming her, Shiro just merely taps her head with his katana until Yoshiro stops the match, 10-0 in favor of Shiro, in only 5 minutes.

"Sorry, Hikari. But CQC is my playground. The fact that you were too aggressive didn't help as well." Shiro utters as he lets the katana's blade rest on his shoulders, turning back from the utterly beaten Hikari.

"You cocky little pervert…"

"Hey! It's not over yet! We still have two more parts left! Next up is Small-Arms Combat!"

 _Fuck._ Shiro thinks to himself. _This is NOT my playground._

"I'll admit, you had me with your flashy sword techniques, however, when it comes to guns, it is I, Ozawa Hikari, who will emerge victorious!"

"Once more, I'll take your word for it. Don't disappoint."

"Count on me to kick your ass!"

"Since firearms aren't my thing and considering it must be your area of expertise… well… I just might count on you to do just that."

"I won't accept you conceding defeat!"

"I'm not planning to. I'm still going to shoot you."

"Oh, kids and their youth... Well then, choose your weapon, Hikari, what will you choose?"

"I don't need any high caliber weapon to take him down, just an M1911, please."

"Ohoho, going for the classic stopping-power heavy-hitter, it seems. Well then, what about you, Shiro?"

"I don't know much about guns… so I'll go with a Python .357"

"A revolver? So apparently, you're a guy who likes swords AND revolvers. Tell us; are you, by any chance, a Yakuza gunman?" The spectators laugh.

"No, I just kinda like revolvers… so."

"Well then, I'm I no position to complain, so here are your weapons!"

A couple of staff hands over an M1911 to HIkari and a Python .357 to Shiro, who feels a bit uncomfortable with a gun, visibly shown as he looks weirdly at its ironsights.

"Same rules, first to 10 wins, 1 for arms and legs, 2 for torso, 3 for disarming and headshots. You can use your hands to disarm at close range, but no contact otherwise. It's all guns from here on out. Don't worry, they're loaded with bullets made up of the same alloy your armor is made of, it's the same business as the swords and knives you used earlier. So, good luck, and gain victory in the dawn's horizon!" As Yoshiro finishes, the horn blows again, and students cheer in anticipation.

"Right. I'll just have to flank her, and it'll be ov- Shit!" Just as he plans to relocate, Shiro gets hit by a bullet to the knee, now glowing bright red from the LED, he takes cover behind metal debris, crouching as he formulates his next plan.

"Oh, and right from the start, Miyamoto gets hit! That's a point for Ozawa!" Yoshiro commentates.

"Damn her. She's probably got a good look of the field, right now I need to get to her flank and take her down there… Let's see." Shiro peeks out of his cover and sees Hikari with her sights aimed directly at him, but as she fires, he reacts quickly and gets back to cover.

"Oooh, that was close! Will Miyamoto pull through!?"

"Shit. This is bad, she knows my position, for all I know, she could be flanking me and-" Shiro's planning gets interrupted as .45 ACP shots come in from his left flank, hitting his left shoulder twice as he scrambles to get out of the killzone. He finds a new spot to hind behind more metal sheets, but Hikari's hot on his trail, firing more shots. He lets off two shots from his .357, but she notices and leaps for cover, and only one bullet barely finds its mark. Hikari got hit on the foot by sheer luck, but it bought enough time for Shiro to reposition to his left.

"She should be right in front of me if I peek here. It's a huge-ass gambit but I'll take it. I'm a bad shot, but at least I won't miss at this range." He then peeks out of his cover again and sees Hikari reloading her M1911 with a fresh magazine. Taking this opportunity, Shiro fires three shots on the crouching girl, hitting her shoulder twice, along with a headshot. Hikari notices too late, but manages to fire her own volley as well, scoring two accurate headshots on Shiro . It's 9-6 in favor of Hikari, and Shiro's formulating yet another plan behind more sheets of metal.

"Oooh! Miyamoto's losing! Just one more shot from Hikari and he's done for!" Yoshiro states over the microphone as the students keep cheering on for their favorites.

"I've got one life to spare… The only way I can win this is if I can pull this last one off. Yes. The last trick I have in my sleeve. If I can shoot her and disarm her quick enough, I'll win 12-9. I've got one bullet left and I can't risk reloading, or else my position's blown. I'll have to wait until she passes close enough…"

Then after a while, Shiro start's hearing footsteps. Very… very cautious footsteps. Seeing her M1911's shadow cast on the ground, Shiro readies himself for a lunge of a lifetime- the ultimate clutch play. Disarm with your left, shoot with your right. Then, after determining the right time, he does it. He leaps high enough to reach the pistol, but still low enough to keep himself in control of his flight. He does the jump correctly, but he executes the moves in the wrong order, he fires first with his right, scoring a headshot and tying 9-9, however, as he prepared to disarm her with his left hand, Hikari's trigger finger moves faster, and sends a bullet straight through Shiro's torso, ending the second part 11-9, Hikari.

"I told you, didn't I? That I'd kick your ass, you perverted idiot!"

"Yeah… yeah you did. And I told you these things aren't my forte as well. And stop calling me that."

"The vanquished will always make excuses."

"Hold up. It's not over yet. Director Yoshiro did say there were three parts to this duel."

"Yes! There are three parts, contrary to the last years' two parts. This time, we'll test your skills in something we haven't taught you yet, something that will definitely put your logical skills to the test! Something that will prove your dominance over the other party! That is… Commanding!"

"Eh? Commanding?" The two ask loudly in unison.

"You heard me right! You will command shipgirls into battle! Or at least, their representations… Your seniors have been doing this for a while, and they've been doing it great, however, that was with practice! You have no experience whatsoever on commanding, thus, it is up to one's wits and logical skills to win! This will be the deciding factor for proving your dominance! Now… prove your worth as an Ozawa and as a Miyamoto! Win your right to stay at the dorm, or send the so-called pervert into exile!" As Yoshiro commentates again, the spectating students laugh and cheer, with students taking sides on who'll win.

 _Shipgirl commanding, huh. This'll make things faster and easier for me. Sorry. Hikari, but I have to make sure that I'll be the one gaining the victory on this dawn's horizon… or something._


	2. PvP

**A/N**

 **I made this chapter short for the sake of introducing the battle mechanics quickly as possible, along with setting a little bit of mood for the story. Rest assured, the next one will be much longer.**

 **The light novel ride never ends. Try spotting all the LN's/Manga/Animu referenced here. Maybe you'll get something. Maybe.**

"Alright you kids, before we do the commanding portion, we'll have to take off your suits, no need for that right now." Director Yashiro orders, as he, along with a few service crews, proceed to detach the alloy armor from both contestants. As her visor is taken off, Shiro notices the determined look in Hikari's face, along with her clenched fist.

"You seem determined." Shiro inquires jokingly,

"Of course, since I'm about to kick your ass… again!"

"Let's see you try…"

 _Sorry, Hikari, but this is what I came here for… I have to make sure that I'll be the one gaining the victory on this dawn's horizon… or something._

"Alright then, let's get you set up! On my right is the Challenge Table, also simply and unoriginally known as the PvP table, which will become your battlefield! Now, what I'm holding in my left hand is a Shipcard deck, which contains the representations of the shipgirls you'll be using. Of course, this does not have all of the ships in the school, for you would require more of these box-decks." The director, now pacing back to the elevated platform on the edge of the gym, taps the table and raises the box-shaped deck on his hand. "I've personally shuffled these cards, so you shouldn't find any bias or anything like that."

 _Man… these features remind me too much of YuGiOh. Good old days, right Erika? Hoo boy… I'm depressing myself again… Never mind that for now. I have to win._ Shiro thinks as the director pauses for breath, seemingly taking something from his pocket.

"This is the Random Compass, also "affectionately" known as the RanDumb Compass. This will affect many parts of your career in this academy, so you best get familiar with it. It contains a magnet inside which moves the compass tip in a random direction, so, in a way, you could say this is an RNG-based compass. Many of your delusional seniors have already begun to worship this RNG, in hopes of its benevolence… crazy bastards."

" **HEIL RNG-SAMA!"** A group of rowdy seniors shout from the top of the bleachers, making the others, and even the director himself laugh.

"I have no need for crazy cults in this school! But anyways, back to the main topic, many of your sorties and battles will rely on the compass, however, there are some ways to bypass it, as formulated by our faculty, it is the students' job to find those ways and exploit them. Well then, I'll explain more as you two battle. Shall we?" Yashiro gestures his hand towards the table and the seats, allowing the two students to sit down. Shiro notices the deck-box placed in his side of the table, and another one in Hikari's. He takes his box and looks at it with curiosity as he notices the cards stowed inside.

"Alright, grab the cards from the opening and familiarize yourself with them. Of course, after this battle you won't be able to keep them, but we'll give all you first-year kids the Starter deck instead. Notice the class designations and stats on the card; if you've got knowledge on ship classes and the like, you've got a huge chance of winning this." Shiro and Hikari does so and opens up their boxes, and notices the cards with artist's impressions of the shipgirls drawn on it, along with their stats, names, and empty circles on the bottom. There's also a quotation below those circles.

"… Poi." Shiro reads the quotation of one of the cards he got, designated as destroyer Yuudachi. Child-like in appearance and quotation, but as he thinks it through, Yashiro, somehow predicting his thoughts, interrupts his thoughts.

"So you got Yuudachi, huh. I know what you're thinking, childlike fragile destroyer, bla bla bla, but if you get her second Remodel she's gonna turn into one helluva firepower beast, kid. Sadly only a few ships in your deck have these upgrades, so check out the others."

 _That doesn't give me too much incentive to use her at all in this form…._

"Uh… sir, what are these circles on the bottom?" Hikari now asks, flipping her card designated "Akatsuki" and pointing at the three circles.

"Equipment slots. They're located in the small pocket on the box, and are required to make full use of your ships. Here's a tip, don't just load your ships entirely with main guns. Make sure to have at most two main guns, designated red. For the carriers, there are Fighters, designated green, Dive Bombers, designated red, Torpedo Bombers, designated blue, and Scout Planes, designated yellow. I'll leave the rest to you. Oh, the equipment themselves has been shuffled as well."

Scrolling through the rest of his deck, a few cards catch Shiro's eyes, for he actually knows the actual WW2 vessels after reading them somewhere.

Battleship Kongou – An early Dreadnought of the IJN, converted to fast Battleship later on.

Aircraft Carrier Kaga – One of the carriers that attacked Pearl Harbor, and a part of the great 1stCarDiv.

Destroyer Akizuki –A late-war destroyer built for anti-air.

Battleship Bismarck – A German Battleship sunk early in the war.

He continues to scroll through the other ships, now held in his hand, totaling at least 30. Hikari also does the same, and Shiro has no idea what to expect. He is in a potentially dangerous situation once more, but he'll have to rely on his skills to win.

"Here are the rules, six ships per fleet, and no submarines for now. First strike will be decided through the "almighty" compass. You guys ready?"

"Yes!"

"Yeah." They reply simultaneously.

"Good! **YOKOSUKAAAA! ARE YOU READYYYY?** " The crowd shouts and cheers in response and laugh as the director coughs. "Damn… I'm never doing that again. Anyways, here goes nothing! If it points South or East, Hikari has first strike and placement, if it points North or West, its Shiro. Well, again, here goes nothing!" He presses the compass button, and it spins almost immediately, creating suspense around the gym. It slows down and then finally stops, pointing towards Southeast.

"Yes! I've got the first strike!" Hikari happily announces.

 _Good. Her mentality's a first-strike type. I'll be able to figure out her composition faster and formulate countermeasures. Lucky me, but since I have no idea about the battle system… I'll just have to make do with it._

"Heh, looks like he's noticed." Yashiro points to the grinning Shiro, who has noticed the benefits of going last.

"I don't care, I'm placing my ships!" She places the standard carrier Hiryu on her side of the table, loaded to the brim with blue Torpedo Bombers. The small panel beneath the first ship's placement area scans the underneath of the card, possibly reading its data to display it in an HUD in the middle of the table. She then follows up with Shoukaku, loaded with four Fighters this time, also having the same effects. This causes Yashiro to comment.

"Wow, that's some serious airpower you're up against, Miyamoto! An unorthodox equipment build, if I may say. Those torpedo bombers… she's probably setting up for a high-output first strike. Can you respond to that, Shiro?"

"We'll see." He replies confidently.

"You seem unfazed. I'm assuming you've got this under control?"

"Not exactly sir, just that I can't let panic get the best of me,"

"Good thinking! I like your style…"

As the two speak, Hikari continues to place more ships onto the table, now placing Nagato and Kirishima Kai Ni, equipped with two main guns, a yellow secondary gun, and a recon plane, which she has determined through historical facts, for ships did have secondary armaments and also carried a recon plane for artillery spotting, a fact that Shiro knows too. Hikari then places two more ships, namely, Sendai and Shigure, equipped with two main guns and a recon plane, but the plane is replaced by a torpedo in Shigure's case. She has now finished placing all of her ships, and it is Shiro's time to play his hand.

 _She has four fighters, hopefully not one of those late-war A7M Reppus, maybe a couple of Zeroes? She also has four torpedo bombers as well. I can't match her in terms of my planes, since I only have one carrier… But if she's loaded her with all fighters, one of her carriers should be useless in attacking ships. I have to make my carrier's loadout balanced. Let's see… A Suisei dive bomber… Tenzan torpedo bomber… and two Reppus. Yeah, that should do._ He then places Kaga with the aforementioned loadout.

 _Next up… I should supplement my air power a bit. If I can take her planes out, I could still have a chance at grabbing Air Superiority or at least Air Parity, which I guess would help a bit, considering most historical battles. Best choice for me would be the Akizuki… since she was built for anti-air. Let's see, an AA fire director, and two High-angle 10cm's… I hope that's enough, though, but considering that AA was Akizuki-class' forte… I may see some good results._ After he places the equipment, he follows up Akizuki on the second ship spot. Yashiro lets out a grin, and Hikari scratches her chin, thinking about the unorthodox formation.

 _Next, I should work on my surface fleet. She's got Nagato, one of them Big 7 ships. She's most likely high-armored. She also has Kirishima, a Kongou-class fast battleship, and a Kai Ni ship at that. I've got Bismarck and Kongou herself to counter them, but the equipment… She's using the recommended two guns, and a secondary gun plus recon planes, possibly for artillery spotting. I have AP shell equipment; with some firepower bonus and a small addition to accuracy, but no anti-air… if I swap out the plane, I can't go for accurate artillery spotting. So I guess I'll have to take a gambit and swap out the secondary gun, since they have roughly the same firepower… Let's see… two red main guns, an AP shell, and a recon plane. Going by historical standards, the spotting I'm hoping for would definitely materialize, but in this system… I'm not sure… Guess I'll have to rely on my luck, then._

 _Then, we have my light fleet. I have a destroyer Murakumo, which should be a good night-fighter… and a… eh… torpedo… cruiser? What am I supposed to load this "Ooi Kai Ni" up with? For Murakumo, I'll just copy Hikari's loadout for Shigure… But since Ooi's a torpedo cruiser… maybe I'll just fill her up with three oxygen torpedoes? Yeah, that should work._ He then places the last ship, Ooi on the table, marking the start of the matchup.

"For starters, you guys should set up your loadouts beforehand, since battles like this will only come rarely, most of your time will be spent clearing missions. Anyway, Shiro, you missed a good opportunity there, Torpedo Cruisers can fire during the "opening torpedo phase", but only if they have midget submarines. Too bad you didn't equip them with it, but nonetheless, she's still a powerful ship. And, oh, if you haven't noticed, the equip build you have on your Akizuki is a nice one, you'll see what I mean later. I'm guessing you got the idea from her historical equipment, yes?"

"Yes sir. I read in an article that she had fire directors, making her a good anti-air vessel."

"Well then, that's enough for now, let's start! Gain victory in the dawn's horizon!" The horn blows once more and the battle's underway. The HUD, displaying the data from both Hikari's and Shiro's fleets, begins calculating the battle outcome, then it displays the "opening air phase", where fighters and bombers from both sides engage. Suddenly, Akizuki cuts-in, as if like in an RPG, and the screen shows an entire fighter squadron of Type 52 Fighters from Hikari being cleared out, allowing Shiro to gain Air Superiority.

"That's an Anti-air cut-in. It clears out an entire random slot from a targeted carrier. It needs a special equipment build to procure it, and you got it on your first day. Nice!"

Shiro's fleet evades the incoming plane-launched torpedoes except for Bismarck who receives light damage. Firing then starts. Hikari's Nagato fires her first shot on Murakumo, but she evades. Shiro's Bismarck responds with an artillery spotting-assisted shot, taking out her Kirishima. Because of this, his Kongou then fires a double attack on Nagato, bringing her down to moderate damage. Shigure fires at Bismarck, but connects only scratch damage. As their match continues, Shiro notices a ruckus from the crowd, in the form of cheers and mumbling.

"Hey, it's them!"

"In the flesh! Oh man! Let me get a picture…"

"Hey look, it's the starter five!"

"Some of the battleships are here as well!"

"Hey, clear some space! They're going to look at the match!"

"Oh, you're right, give them some space!"

Shiro hears the last ones clearly and turns back, only to see the shipgirls themselves without their riggings, taking a seat in the bleachers and looking at the huge screen on the ceiling. One of them comments.

"Hey, Kirishima-san got beat, hahaha!" A girl wearing an orange uniform utters as she observes the match, noticing Kirishima's disabled status.

"T-that's not me!" A tall, bespectacled woman responds, which Shiro observes to be Kirishima herself.

"Can't you just keep silent and watch the match, Sendai-san?" A blue-haired girl protests, which is revealed to be Murakumo, in the flesh. Some of her fellow destroyers have worried looks on their faces as she says this.

"You're no fun…" The girl known as Sendai responds.

 _Eh, they're here. So they do act like normal girls when not on duty…_

The match still goes on, with Hikari now having lost Shigure and Kirishima, and her Nagato in medium damage, while Shiro lost Kaga and Akizuki from Hiryuu's attack runs. His Bismarck is in light damage, and Kongou is in perfect health along with his Ooi while Murakumo is in medium. The closing torpedo from Ooi hits Hiryuu, and the triple torpedo-equipped cruiser reduces the carrier's health to 1, leaving Hikari only with Nagato, Shoukaku, and Sendai, while Shiro still has Ooi, Kongou, Bismarck and Murakumo.

"Well then, the day phase has ended! Hopefully that's given everyone a small taste of ship battles. But that doesn't end there! There's still one last phase these two need to go through. It's a make-or-break phase, there have been many records of clutch-wins in this phase, especially in Special Events. It is called as Ni-"

" **NIGHT BATTLE~!** " Sendai shouts from the top of her lungs, which can be heard from across the Gym.

"Uh-huh. Well then. Shall we proceed? Yasen, begin!"

The HUD's background has changed. A night-like image is projected behind the ship icons. Nagato kicks things off first with a double-attack on Murakumo, which takes her out of the picture with a whopping 213 double-attack damage.

"Ouch." The real Murakumo comments, observing the match form the bleachers.

"I still have more ships… I can still wi-"

"Oh, I forgot to mention. Carriers are absolutely useless during night. Since, you know… The pilots can't see." Yashiro mentions as the simulation continues, with Bismarck shooting down Shoukaku.

"-Ay." Hikari stops in the middle of her murmur.

The battle still rages on as Sendai retaliates with a surprising gun cut-in, taking out Bismarck in one shot, a feat unaccomplished by the heavy hitters like Nagato.

 _Eh?_

Shiro is shocked at the instant takedown, as he thinks the tables might've been turned on him, but he regains his composure as he takes a deep breath. Yashiro, noticing this, takes time to explain the feature.

"That kind of thing happens. It's what we call luck. You see, the battle calculation system is also based on RNG. So yeah, it's luck. However, you can actually influence the RNG by increasing the luck stat of your ships individually, making the chance of procuring a cut-in like that more likely. The fact that night phase boosts damage makes cut-ins more potent, making it worthwhile to invest in luck."

Kongou then cleans up Nagato with a double attack; Then Ooi does a torpedo cut-in, shooting Sendai down with a whopping 293 damage, ultimately resulting in an S-rank victory for Shiro. The gym gets filled with cheers as those who rooted for him win their wagers or something similar, while some seniors merely laugh due to the fact that the situation has happened to them already. Stepping down from the platform, Shiro is encountered by Murakumo, who, in her curiosity, decides to talk with him.

"So, you're a new student, huh? How come you already know the optimal loadouts?"

 _Hmm? I thought talking with a shipgirl would feel kinda off. But it just seems… normal, I guess._

"I just guessed, I mean, the tip the Director gave us was very valuable, and Ozawa's loadouts gave me the idea of an armor-piercing and artillery spotting hybrid in the first place."

"Oh, so you're one of those people who know how to adapt to a situation, huh."

"I guess so."

"Well, that's all I wanted to ask, I'll see you tomorrow then, Miyamoto Shiro." The blue-haired girl utters as she turns back a and takes her leave to join the other shipgirls near the exit.

"Tomorrow?"

"We have an assembly tomorrow, kid." Yashiro answers. "The entire starter five is going to be there to personally see you first years, and deliver a few messages as well."

"Ah I see." Shiro responds with a sigh. "Not to worry… I'll become your admiral soon enough." He jokingly says under his breath.

"I look forward to it." Murakumo, a bit far away, responds, much to Shiro's amazement. Predicting his reaction, she points at her mechanical ear-like drones, which he assumes to be Sonar pieces.

 _She can hear me from here, huh. Amazing. But, more importantly… how are those things floating?_

"Hey kid, looks like someone's requesting for your attention." Yashiro, tapping Shiro's shoulder, points at Hikari, intently staring at the victor. He moves closer to her, and taps her by the shoulder as well, as if to calm her down.

"I… uh… don't actually know what to do in this situation." He utters with an awkward smile. 

"You won this time, you pervert."

"Please don't call me that. Just call me Shiro or something."

"Fine, if you insist. Baka Shiro."

"I can live with that, I guess."

 _Now I get it… She's playing the tsundere card on me. But why? Why is she putting up a fro- nah, I know why, I'll stop deluding myself. I'm not that dense, after all. This'll prove to be a problem if this grows, but I don't want to shoot people down. Especially beautiful girls like these. Man, go choose someone else. Maybe she'll grow tired of me soon enough. Or maybe she doesn't actual- nah, I won't lie to myself. I know this trope all too well… man I sound like a narcissist. In a way, I guess I am a narcissist, huh?_ He thinks as he lets out a chuckle and a sigh.

"Hey, Ozawa. You remember our little agreement about dominance to whoever wins this match, right?"

 _Why can't I just call her Hikari or something…?_

"Huh? Yeah. You can stay at th- W-wait no, t-that was j-just a f-figure of speec-"

"Meaning you'll do what I say, right? About anything."

"A-a-anything?! Not anything! No!"

"Eh… I see. The renowned Ver- eh… Ozawa family can't even keep the promise they made."

"Don't mistake me for someone else! And who said they don't? Okay! I'll be your servant or dog or whatever you want! Make me do whatever! Make me fulfill your perverted orders! Pervert! Idiot! I hate you!" She responds, embarrassed and pouting. Shiro merely laughs at the statement, despite the sharp stares from other schoolmates.

 _Damn… I thought I'd be able to pull off a perfect Kurogane here… Serves me right for imitating a light novel protagonist…_

"W-what are you laughing about!?"

"Then, this is an order, Ozawa… Be my roommate."

"Eh?"

"I want to be closer to you."

"C-close… how dare you say such a thing to someone you just met!? Really, you're so insensitive." She replies, still visibly blushing and embarrassed.

"Or I guess you don't want to do that, after all. Well, despite all that, we can still talk to the director to reconsi-"

"No… don't."

"What… So you do want to be with me?"

"Let me be clear, this is only because it's an order! It is my responsibility as the loser of a match with this stipulation!"

"Well then. Let's make this work, Ozawa." Shiro moves his hand out for a handshake, but Hikari merely looks at it.

"Hikari."

"Huh?"

"If you don't call me that, I won't try to make this work."

"Eh… Then, let's make this work. Hikari."

"If you insist on it." She responds, while also shaking his hand.

"See you later at the dorms then." Shiro utters, waving his hand in the air as he moves away.

"Where are you going?"

"Food. I'm still hungry."

 _Of course I can't linger for too long after doing something so embarrassing. Well, my objective's been completed, at least. Time to go talk to Aya or something._

 _MISSION OBJECTIVE: COMPLETE  
FRIEND 2 GAINED_

 _METHODS:_

 _AWKWARD AS EXPECTED_

 _REWARDS:_

 _TSUNDERE FRIEND_

 _EXP GAINED:_

 _1337XP_

 _RANK: A_

 _If only my life was a video game. I'd be pretty much raiding the Abyss right now._

Heading back to the open-air canteen, Shiro sees the vacated benches and tables being cleaned up by none other than Aya, who collects the unwashed dishes. Seeing this, he decides to help her out. He then moves in close to the blue-haired girl.

"Hey, it's me again. Let me help you, alright?"

"S-s-sure, Shiro…"

After cleaning up the rest of the utensils, Aya takes off her servicewoman hat and apron and places them inside the stall as she bids the now-leaving stall owner goodbye, for the sun has set and it's time to close up shop. As they both sat down on a bench, Shiro decides to break the silence.

"Uh… If it's fine with you, I'd like to ask you something."

"W-what is it?"

"I'm assuming you're a freshman, right?" He asks, pointing at her uniform. "So how come you're already working part-time in here on the first day of school?"

"Actually, I've been helping out here before I decided to enroll." She replies.

"Ah, I see… Man, sorry to bug you with all these personal questions…"

"It's okay, Shiro… eh… if you don't mind, can I ask you something as well…?"

"Sure."

"A-about the way you act… I take it you have a hard time conversing with people, right?"

"Yes. As you said a bit earlier, I'm having a hard time with people, in general. You must know that by now, right?" He responds as they both laugh.

"I do… Because… I've been like that before."

"Oh, did something happen? I-I mean… if you don't want to talk about it, then forg-"

"No, no. It's okay. It was when I lost an important friend… I just… couldn't talk to someone else without seeing or remembering her face…"

 _At last… someone who understands my pain…_

"I guess you could say I'm quite the same, too. After I lost Eri- I mean, my friend, I just literally didn't want to speak to anyone else… I guess I just got hit too hard after that… I mean, we were friends since childhood, and… to have someone like that taken away from you… is painful. In any case, I guess I just wanted to… talk with her more."

"We've both lost some important people in our lives…"She replies, looking at the orange-tinted cloudless sky as the sun begins to set. "For the two of us to have met… could it have been fate, I wonder?"

 _I'm getting tempted to ask whether it's Stay Night, Zero, or Ilya, but nah._

"I guess… Well, fate must've been making fun of me when I first introduced myself… weirdly."

"If it was me two years ago… I would have done the same thing, so don't feel too awkward, Shiro!"

 _Oh my, that smile. Never ceases to charm me._

"Thank you, Aya." Shiro replies with a close-eyed smile of his own, making Aya blush a bit.

"N-no problem…"

"Oh, it's getting dark… Are you staying at the dorms?"

"Y-yeah… I do."

"Well then, let's go. I'll accompany you." He says as he stands up from the bench, checking his pockets for the dorm key.

"A-alright…"

The two then proceed to the dorm building's lobby, where they find Hikari standing near the door, holding out her phone. Shiro tries to approach her, but she calls him out first.

"Oi, Baka-Shiro! Some of the other 401 guys are already at the dorm room! We've been waiting for you, you know?"

"Ah, sorry about that."

"Anyway, who's that with you?"

"She's Hiiragi Aya. A new-found friend of mine… I guess." As he introduces her, she bows.

"N-nice to m-meet you, O-Ozawa-san!" she follows up.

"Eh, just call me Hikari, okay? Just Hikari."

"Y-yes, Hikari!"

"Hey, didn't you say some of our roommates are already there? Is there still someone left?" Shiro asks, as the trio head into the elevator.

"Yeah, excluding you, there's still one left." Hikari replies as she presses the 4th floor button. "What about you, Aya, which floor are you in?"

"Uh… the truth is…" She responds timidly, as she shows her keychain. It has the number 401 written on it.

"Ah, so you're with us then. Mighty convenient." Shiro replies with a smile. "If so, where are your things?"

"Ah, I asked Nagum- eh… One of my friends who's also staying in the same room to carry mine while I was at work…"

"Oh, so that's why they carried an unusually large amount of luggage…" Hikari adds as the elevator bell rings and the trio exit. Walking through the hallway, they knock on the 401's door. As it opens, they immediately see a girl with crimson red-tinted long hair, who greets them with a smile and a "Yo." As they enter, Shiro notices a bespectacled black, spiky-haired man sitting on one of the beds tinkering around with his smartphone, who also greets them with a casual wave of his hand.

 _Luckily there's another guy in here… otherwise this'd play out oddly similar to a certain anti-magic platoon… good thing there aren't any witches here… or is there? I hope not…_

"Now that we're all here… I'd like everyone to once again introduce themselves… I'm Ozawa Hikari. Nice to meet you all… I guess." She utters as she looks sharply at Shiro.

"Hey, what you looking at me for? Listen, I ain't forcing you to anything just because I won the mat-"

"Shut up about that already! J-just introduce yourself, Baka Shiro!"

"Alright, alright. Sheesh. Don't get angry at me, flight deck-san. I'm Miyamoto Shiro. Nice to meet you all."

"Who the hell are you calling flat!" She replies as she begins to choke Shiro. Reaching his hand somewhat jokingly off to Aya, she then starts to introduce herself.

"I'm Hiiragi Aya. N-nice to meet you all!"

"Hmm. Those surnames… everyone here seems to come from somehwat renowned families." Shiro adds. "Hey, you two. Come on, introduce yourselves."

"Oh, it's our turn already? Well then. Yamamoto Erina here. Looking forward to working with you all!" The red-haired girl utters while leaning on one of the bunk beds.

 _Erina? Damn, that reminds me of Erika. Why can't I stop depressing myself…?_

"Yamamoto? Hey, you're a descendant of Yamamoto Isoroku?" Hikari asks.

"Yeah, I came from his line."

 _Damn, these guys all came from either renowned modern families or ones with naval backgrounds… while I bring the name of a clan of samurai… Oh wait, one hasn't introduced himself yet…_

"What about you?" Shiro asks the man with the smartphone.

"Me? Oh, sorry, sorry. I'm Nagumo Raku. Pleased to meet you guys." He replies, stowing away his smartphone and slightly thrusting his glasses upwards with his right middle and index fingers, letting off a small glare from the bulb's light reflecting on his glasses.

 _Hey… So they really are from renowned families… Wait… Raku…that's not really his real name, is it? I'd like to ask him but that'd seem pretty off. Oh wait… is that an air conditioning system? Oh man. It's been pretty hot back at the mansion… Looks like I might just enjoy this._

A knock can then be heard from the door. Erina answers and opens it, only to see Yashiro outside, carrying a small piece of paper.

"O-oh, Director!" The tall, red-haired woman exclaims.

"Yo. The student council needed a hand on distributing these, so here." He then hands over an envelope to Erina, who receives it. He bids farewell and closes the door, and she starts taking out the envelope's contents and begins to read it.

"Eh… Platoon system announcement… All room inhabitants up to a maximum of five will be grouped together as a Platoon and given a designated number for identification…. Uh… The following students, Miyamoto Shiro, Ozawa Hikari, Hiiragi Aya, Yamamoto Erina, and Nagumo Shuu will be designated as the 25th Platoon from here on out."

 _Luckily it's not the 35_ _th_ _, or else I'd had to have assumed that fate was playing tricks on me. Anyways, Nagumo Shuu? So his name wasn't Raku at all… Sneaky bastard._

"Oh… so Raku's just an alias, huh?" Hikari asks him this time.

"Yeah. It's a little callsign I came to use after… watching something."

 _I knew it… this guy totally read Nisekoi! He really wants to become a dense harem-pro, doesn't he…? Poor bastard. Well I guess I can't really blame him… I did try to imitate Kurogane Ikki, after all. And with the new Platoon system… Eh wait…_ As he thinks, he looks at his sword…

 _Doesn't this make me look way too much like Kusanagi Takeru? Ah fuck. I'm a walking imitation of a guy teamed up with a former witch, a dual-wielding witch-hating inquisitor, a bunny and a perv… Thanks, fate, or… whoever it is controlling my fate… Kami-sama… or… whoever. Ah, whatever. I just want to enjoy my air conditioning system…_

Meanwhile, outside their room, Yashiro talks with another man dressed similarly as him sporting a widow's peak, leaning at one of the walls.

"Hey, director… Are you sure about this? Putting all of them in one place…"

"Of course. It'd make them easier to observe. You should know the benefits of that better than anyone else, right, Zura? Your Auxiliary Weapons Research and Development team-whatever-something will get data more efficiently and a lot faster than getting them individually, right?"

"It's not Zura… It's Katsura… Though you're right, director. I'll keep that in mind."

"Your very unoriginal quirk never ceases to make me laugh." He replies, puffing out smoke as they move away from the premises.


	3. Carrying Half the Burden

**A/N**

 **Thanks for the reviews, glad you guys liked it.**

 **I looked it up and Kawakaze does indeed have the same VA as Stella Vermillion. Though their attitudes aren't that similar…**

 **Hope you guys enjoy what I have to offer. And sorry for the delayed update. (Updates are scheduled Weekdays, by the way. Anime-style.**

"We'll be a platoon from now on, huh… I don't know exactly how it'll work, but I think I have an idea." Shiro states as the five students sit down on their respective bunks, with him sitting near the air-conditioning system with delight.

Yeah, we're going to go hunt witches and recover magical artifacts from the black market... Oh, wait…

"Judging from what you two have shown earlier… Maybe we'll be working together in those duels and stuff?" Erina ask while stroking her long ponytail-tied crimson red hair with a comb as she sits down on her bunk.

"Most likely, maybe we'll also get to work together in classes and the like?" Hikari now adds, lying down on her portion of the bunk, just below Shiro's, who is still enjoying his position near the air-con system.

"We're a platoon; we're supposed to work together, so yeah…" Aya adds, timid as ever. "What about you, Rakkun- eh, Shuu?"

Did she just seriously call him Rakkun? Have some originality dammit! You have to place your own name in the hall of density! Now that I think about it… Shuu sounds familiar as well… Oh, wait; he's the sidekick guy… I guess he wasn't content with just staying as a supporting character, eh? Haha.

"Well…" Shuu starts talking, adjusting his glasses upward with two of his right hand's fingers, as his left hand holds his smartphone. "I'm hoping that they allow us to help each other for the shipgirl commanding training. Maybe some information sharing or something..."

"Yeah. Whatever it is, this system will be a great help…" Hikari responds.

"Come on, let's not think about that for now! The night's still young, you know? Curfew's at 11 here, so why don't we guys get something to eat?" Erina recommends, smirking at the thought.

Ah, come on… don't take me away from my air-conditioner… But anyway, this'll be a good chance to add two more people to the list… Eh, that came off weird…

"I'll go with it." Shiro responds, as the other members nod their heads as well, including Shuu. "But we're still in our uniforms, though."

"That's fine! We're just going out for food, after all." She responds, sticking her thumb up.

"Alrighty then." Shiro utters, grabbing his sword hanging from the bed's frame. Standing outside the room's door with the rest of the platoon behind him, and with no actual reason, he decides to shout;

"Alright! 25th Platoon, Move out! Let's gain victory in the dawn's horizon!" He shouts, his loud voice reaching through the far ends of the corridor, making a few other students near him laugh as well. His own roommates respond with a shout of their own, followed by laughter afterwards.

It's nice… Haven't felt like this in a long time… But I'll never know, this may just be a one-time thing. Fun things never last forever. Having simple happiness torn away from me again would be pretty harsh. Keep that in mind, fate. Ah, now that I think about it…

"Wait, aren't the stalls outside closed by now?" Shiro, now having calmed down from his own joke, asks Erina, who came up with the idea.

"There's food being served at the rooftop." She responds, lively as ever. "It's my treat, since we're platoon buddies now, right? Consider it a welcome present of mine… or something."

Yay, at least my wallet won't cry…

"Oh, as expected of the Yamamoto family! Hey, hey, we're free to pick whatever we like, yeah?" Hikari inquires as they begin to enter the elevator.

"Sure! Whatever you like, feel free to choose! They might have some milk over there, you know!" She responds with laughter.

"Wha- H-hey!" Hikari responds, a bit shocked, only to look at Erina's chest, and then her own, only to feel more breast envy than ever.

"That's nice…" Aya utters in pure amazement at the thought of Erina letting them do as they please.

As they enter the elevator, Shiro notices the CCTV camera in the far-right corner, which he stares at and even letting out a smile towards it, hopefully to confuse the operator. Behind the screen, monitoring the cameras in the area is Katsuragi Keigo, commonly known as Zura, or, as he wants it, Katsura, who, along with the Director is monitoring some select students.

"What a lively bunch these guys are." Zura remarks, pointing at his monitor, which shows the 25th inside the elevator.

"I expected this." Director Yashiro responds. "I took into account Miyamoto's withdrawal from society and decided that putting him alongside people with somewhat similar experiences should bring out his true self and his maximum potential, and that applies to the other four as well. I know it sounds like a shounen manga cliché, but friends really do make people stronger. Which means more accurate data for you."

"Yeah… indeed. Though these duels of yours aren't exactly the best test of capabilities…"

"Nah, you'll see it soon enough. Though these duels have a flaw… they're fought against humans."

"What do you suggest we do, then?"

"We still have a lot of time. Make use of the data we'll get for now, I'll find a way. Anyway, here's the background info on the 25th you requested."

"Thanks, director." Zura then receives the brown envelope and takes out a few pieces of paper, which contains the information about the 25th platoon's members.

 **Yokosuka Naval Academy Head Department**

 **YOKOSUKA KAIGUN GAKUEN - 25 SHIKEN SHOUTAI**

 **DETAILED REPORT AND OBSERVANCES**

 **(Note: All details are gathered from questionnaires, surveillance and other tests and reflect only initial results as of now.)**

 **MIYAMOTO, SHIRO**

 **1995 APR 2**

 **FIRST YEAR, SEC. YOKOSUKA.**

 **AREAS OF EXPERTISE**

 **CQC**

 **Naval, Surface, and Aerial warfare**

 **Linguistics**

 **Field Commanding**

 **WEAKNESSES**

 **Firearms of any type**

 **Mathematics**

 **Socialization (Refer to notes for more info)**

 **GENERAL DESCRPTION**

 **Melee specialist and strategist, proficient in swordsmanship and field commanding. Untrained in long-firearms usage, has slight experience with small arms. Multilingual, fluent in German and English.**

 **NOTES**

 **Lost a large amount of family/clan members as a result of the early years of the Abyss War, slightly withdrawn from society. Shows potential in both shipgirl commanding and frontline fighting.**

 **Weapons of choice: Folded-steel Katana, Colt Python .357**

 **OZAWA, HIKARI**

 **1995, OCT 8**

 **FIRST YEAR, SEC. YOKOSUKA.**

 **AREAS OF EXPERTISE**

 **Firearms of all types**

 **Naval Warfare**

 **Field Commanding**

 **WEAKNESSES**

 **Melee Combat**

 **GENERAL DESCRPTION**

 **Firearms specialist and strategist, proficient in firearms combat and field commanding. Has slight experience with melee combat, but requires great improvement.**

 **NOTES**

 **Prodigy since elementary. Excels in every academic subject. Shows potential in shipgirl commanding and long range support. Has a history of separatism from other people.**

 **Weapons of choice: CheyTac Intervention, Beretta M9 / Colt M1911, Combat Knife.**

 **HIIRAGI, AYA**

 **1995 SEP 21**

 **FIRST YEAR, SEC. YOKOSUKA.**

 **AREAS OF EXPERTISE**

 **First-aid**

 **Close-range firearms**

 **Naval Warfare**

 **CQC (Melee Combat)**

 **WEAKNESSES**

 **Long-range Firearms**

 **Field Commanding**

 **GENERAL DESCRPTION**

 **Supporting First-aid specialist with knowledge in close-range combat using firearms and melee weapons, but unconfident in field commanding.**

 **NOTES**

 **Shy. Trained in CQC, but is still a notch down of Miyamoto's. Has some potential in close-range support and usual shipgirl commanding but has problems in confidently making decisions, choices, and crucial orders. Shyness causes her to be withdrawn from usual people.**

 **Weapons of choice: Combat Knife, FN Five-seveN**

 **YAMAMOTO, ERINA**

 **1995 JAN 18**

 **FIRST YEAR, SEC. YOKOSUKA.**

 **AREAS OF EXPERTISE**

 **CQC (Firearms)**

 **Naval and Aerial warfare**

 **Close-Medium range Firearms**

 **Field Commanding**

 **WEAKNESSES**

 **Melee Combat**

 **Long-range Firearms**

 **GENERAL DESCRPTION**

 **CQC specialist, proficient in short-mid range weapons and field commanding. Inexperienced in melee combat, indoctrinated with the art of naval and aerial warfare during childhood.**

 **NOTES**

 **Descendant of Isoroku Yamamoto, brilliant naval tactician trained since birth, has knowledge in close-medium range firearms. Melee Combat needs great improvement. Good potential in shipgirl commanding and front-line fighting. Family history causes her to distance herself from others.**

 **Weapons of choice: Any melee weapon, G36c, Glock 17**

 **NAGUMO, SHUU**

 **1995 DEC 19**

 **FIRST YEAR, SEC. YOKOSUKA.**

 **AREAS OF EXPERTISE**

 **Technical Operations**

 **Naval warfare**

 **Linguistics**

 **Field Commanding**

 **Technological Enhancement**

 **WEAKNESSES**

 **Firearms**

 **Melee combat**

 **GENERAL DESCRPTION**

 **Technological specialist and strategist, proficient in serving behind the lines to assist others. Has only basic knowledge in CQC and Firearms, thus needing more training.**

 **NOTES**

 **Distant from most of society, spends most of his time on the web on forums and boards. An up-and-coming strategist with some potential for shipgirl commanding and behind-the-scenes support. Will most likely serve as the technological advisor for the 25** **th** **.**

 **Weapons of choice: Any melee weapon, any firearm, custom Windows 7 build with fiber optic connection, quad surround sound speakers and tri-monitor display.**

"Looks like we got a candidate for the most OP Platoon." Zura comments.

"They're not the only ones with an absurdly strong lineup. Just look at the 13th, the clash between those two would be quite a spectacular matchup… they'll have a hard time fighting each other…"

"The 13th and the 25th, huh… They seem strong… Man, this year's students are pretty good… maybe we'll get more admirals this time?"

"Yeah. It's a given that this year will produce plenty of junior admirals… but I'm more interested with this year's… special candidates."

"Of course. We wouldn't be doing all of these if it weren't for the new kids filled with potential, right?" Zura inquires, stretching both his left and right arms to emphasize the monitors.

"Mhm. This actually took quite a while to set up…" Director Yashiro answers, knocking on one of the monitor screens.

"Nevertheless, it will help our guys a lot to get more data about these guys. The only places these cameras won't reach are the bathrooms and the dorm rooms, after all. We'll know almost absolutely everything about them."

"That came off weird, Zura."

"It's not Zura, It's Katsura-."

"You wish. You don't even have a sword, and you aren't fighting against the bakufu."

"A man can dream, director… a man can dream."

Meanwhile, the 25th platoon arrives at the open-air rooftop, complete with a catering section, a bar of sorts and tables which allow accommodation for many people at once. There are other students on the rooftop as well, and Shiro notices that they're their seniors. The five students take their seats on a table near the edge of the rooftop, with a clear view of the campus grounds below.

"Looks great up here." Shiro comments, leaning on the handrails from his seat.

"Isn't it? The night is a very beautiful time…" Erina adds, sitting right next to Shiro.

"Yeah. You could say that again." Erina merely smiles at Shiro's remark, making him a bit embarrassed… somehow.

Wait, why am I getting embarrassed? Damn. I guess it's a given since I haven't talked to anyone like this for a while… but still… These guys… just feel right for me… Thanks, fate.

The 25th, scanning through the menu, picks their own food as a waiter awaits their inquiry, with each of them picking food to their liking, with the assurance of not having to pay anything thanks to Erina. After picking their food, they utter their orders to the waiter, who goes back to the catering area. Looking once more to the campus grounds, Shiro notices the brightly-colored fountain below, which catches his eye as he looks on. Erina catches on to this, as the rest of the platoon talk to each other.

"Hey, that looks pretty nice, yeah?" Shiro, noticing Erina beside her, asks.

"Yeah." She replies, looking at the fountain with the smile.

Now that I think about it, she's actually an energetic type of person… At first glance she'd look like one of those cold, serious-type ones… Wait, is it possible that she's only shown this side of hers to the platoon? Or is this truly her? Did she intend to change herself for a better chance at making friends? Well, if she did, then I can assume... actually I can't. I would rather talk to her myself than make baseless ideas… If she deems it to sensitive then I won't chase it down.. but I am a member of the 25th platoon. I must know them well.

"Eh, Erina… I'd like to… eh… talk with you later… if possible."

"Hmm, why not right now?"

"If possible… I would want it to be… in private."

"Ohoho? Ehh, could it be? Do you want to confess to me, Shiro?" She replies with a subtle but noticeable hint of sarcasm while looking at him with quite a mischievous grin, making him laugh a bit as he straightens up his seat.

Damn, I was laughing through that, but I could feel it… my heart skipped a beat back there…

"Everything can't be too convenient, can it?" He replies this time as the two laugh together.

"Hey, hey, what are you two talking about? Tell us, baka Shiro!" HIkari asks. Noticing their laughter.

"Well, nothing serious, really, right, Erina?" He asks, but doesn't get a reply.

"Ehh… Erina… You okay?"

"Ah… yeah!" She replies with a laugh, while being visibly red.

"I said something embarrassing earlier… yet I'm only feeling it now!" She thinks to herself.

What, is she embarrassed or something? What for? I ask myself this, yet I already know the answer. Anybody who said that would be pretty embarrassed… even I would...

As the platoon starts to go silent again, the waiter from before carries a tray towards their table, placing a plethora of tasty foodstuffs and premium-looking drinks which would be quite a luxury for most students, all at Erina's expense. She receives a check from the waiter and looks at the 5-digit figure before placing it down at the table…

"This is a one-time thing… alright?" She tells the rest of the platoon, who laugh afterwards.

"Well… the food is here… let's eat!" Aya timidly announces, as the rest respond with a "Yes!" with their chopsticks at the ready.

It's been a while since I ate like this… not to mention I'm with other people… to be honest, I'm not too confident with using chopsticks in public anymore. Shiro thinks with his peculiar bowl of ramen in his hand, with his cola on the other.

"I hope you don't mind me asking this, but what's with the weird food choice, Shiro?" The silent Shuu asks, as he splits his sticks and prepares to chow down on his rice with cube-cut pork on top.

"It's been a while since I ate this. I just missed eating it, that's all. Eating a lot of instant ramen just wants you to go eat the real thing."

"I see. Well then…"

"Itadakimasu!" The five-man platoon utters as they begin to eat their selected food, with Hikari on the spotlight, deliciously eating her braised beef with rice with amusing expressions.

Damn, that's cute… Wait, what am I thinking? …time to eat. 

With chopsticks in hands, Shiro continues to chow down on the seafood-filled spicy ramen, slurping the noodles swiftly, then grabbing the bowl and chugging down the remaining soup. As if that wasn't enough at all, he tried to raise his hand towards the waiter, but he remembers that Erina was covering for the food, thus he sits back down instead.

Crap… I can't order another set like this… that'd be too shameless. I don't usually care about my image… but… this is a chance to start a new life, right here. I won't waste this.

"What's the matter, Shiro? Was the food not enough for you?" Erina asks, noticing a bit of hesitation on Shiro's part.

"N-no… it's not that… it's…"

This isn't good… I have to find an excuse!

"I… um…. I'm going to… wash my hands?"

"Oh, that so? Sure, go ahead." She replies, going back to eating her kara-age chicken with rice.

Going inside the washroom, Shiro washes his hands despite not actually planning to do so, but does it anyway in a sense of responsibility. While he washes his hands, he notices someone's footsteps and the familiar odor of nicotine behind him, and upon turning back, he notices Director Yashiro with his trademark pipe-cigar, washing his hands on the sink to his right.

"Fancy meeting you here."

"Ah, good evening, Director. Do you need something?" Shiro asks, turning off the water and heading towards the dryer.

"Just a couple of questions. So, how's life with your platoon-mates treating you?" The Director asks, applying liquid soap to his hands.

"Well, it's nice, definitely. Though I noticed something…"

"Yeah? What is it, kid?"

"I feel like, somehow… we have the same problems, one way or another…. I trapped myself inside the mansion for almost a year, Hikari's arrogance doesn't make her likely to have many friends, Aya's too shy to have effective socialization, Shuu is, well, that should be obvious… And Erina, somehow… I feel like who she is right now, energetic, friendly…that… isn't exactly her."

Yashiro sighs. "Before I explain that to you, want to have a smoke? Nobody will know." He asks, gesturing his pipe.

"I don't smoke, sir."

"Ah, not a fan of the good ol' Nico', aren't we?"

"If it's another Nico, then we'll talk, sir."

"Sorry kid, this Nico of mine won't go Nico Nico Nii on you."

"That's such a shame, huh, sir?" Shiro remarks as they both laugh.

"Indeed. Anyways, the reason I put you awkward bunch into the same platoon is because of that same reason. You guys have a hard time fitting in. What better way to remedy that than to let you fit in amongst yourselves?"

"Good point… so I guess that explains it…" Shiro replies with his sword still hanging on his waist, heading outside. "Thanks for explaining, director. I'll be off now."

"Wait. I need to ask you one last question."

"What is it?" He stops near the washroom's door.

"What do you think of the abyssals?"

Wait… why is he asking me this? Of course, the abyssal deserve to sink to the bottom of the depths!

The director has touched a very sensitive topic.

Shiro's deep seated hatred for the Abyss stems from the loss of his clanmates and close friend, Erika, which was also the reason for his isolation from the outside world. Of course he would come to hate the ones who caused her sister's death.

 _Since he's the director… I'm assuming he has to know my past._

"I believe you know the answer to that, director."

"I know that one of your closest acquaintances was aboard the unlucky JS Atago… up to this day, most of what happened there still remains a mystery… The ship was lost when it veered off course in a storm near sector 5-dash-2. Our shipgirls haven't been able to penetrate that far."

"Then you know my reason for such hatred." Shiro replies, grasping the hilt of his sword tightly.

"True, I do. But what I want to know is whether you'll go to great heights to exact that revenge."

"That is why I enlisted here, director. To become an admiral, command the shipgirls, and eliminate the abyss."

"That's a long way to go."

"But I plan to finish it."

"Well then, I know your resolve. I'm not exactly supposed to tell you this, but we actually have information about the Atago's status and whereabouts."

 _If there was such information in the first place… why didn't they tell it to the families who lost their children and friends that day…!_

"Wha- then why didn't you announ-"

"It had to be done. We don't know the full extent of the abyssal's capabilities, but they seem to be able to break some of our encryption codes. Most of our naval communications have been left obsolete in the wake of their attack."

"Where are you going with this…?" He asks again, his grip on the hilt ever tighter.

"I'm saying that the abyss might know of our plans about the Atago. The Atago isn't just some ship which had lots of crewmen on it; it was the first ship to venture out to the deep abyss territories. It has tons of potential data that could help us turn the tides of this war. "

"But that data would be useless if the ship is already on the bottom of the sea… wait, that means-"

"Yes. There's a reason why we listed the Atago crew members off as merely MIA. I guess you didn't get the hint. Our last ditch attempt to re-establish orbital communications with other countries ended up doing something else, our satellite, for the entire 30 minutes it deployed its cameras before getting shredded to bits in the stratosphere, captured a figure resembling a destroyer on sector five waters. We assume that it was the Atago."

 _Wait, seriously? That means..!_

"However, we do not know the fate of the crew. For all I know they could've been captured or even eliminated by the enemy… or worse."

"What could be worse than having the crew, along with my sister killed?"

"Torture. As I said earlier, they broke through our codes, but they won't necessarily trust every single radio broadcast. Take Midway '42, for example, that was radio deception at its best. These guys don't want to fall into that kind of trap, so torturing POW's seems like a good option."

 _Those monsters... Although there's a slim chance that Erika's still alive… I won't forgive them… No… I absolutely can't forgive them._

"I'll… kill all of them…" Shiro utters instinctively, with his hilt clearly shaking from how hard he's gripping it.

"Come on, you can't be Yuuichirou Hyakuya or Eren Jaeger. Listen, you can't save everyone, nor can you just kill every single one of your enemies as well. I came here presenting you a chance, thinking that you could've controlled your thirst for revenge like the others… however… it seems the time is too early." After hearing Yashiro's words, Shiro sighs, and calms down.

 _If I use my knowledge of… things in this situation, I'm guessing this chance he's talking about is in the form of some weapon a-la Cursed Gears, or actually allowing me to command the shipgirls or actual naval vessels. Of course I can't let my desire take over me… but…_

"What do you mean about the others?" Shiro, having calmed down a bit, takes his hand off the hilt.

"Every one of you here has a desire, be it glory, revenge, or something like that… you're the first one I've approached, and judging from your reaction, I'll assume that the others still need time as well. Looks like this academy wasn't a mistake, after all."

"I'll just ask right here, director. What exactly is this… chance… you're presenting us?"

"I'll ask you something first. Have you ever heard of the First Squadron?"

The First Squadron.

An urban legend about the men who fought the Abyss on land with nothing but modern firearms, and even unusual weapons straight out of light novels including but not limited to sharp edged katanas, armor-piercing bows, electro-tipped crossbows, and even brass knuckles. Each description varies on whoever you ask about it, thus earning their reputation as a mere urban legend. What's more is that they fought these creatures without any other supporting machinery whatsoever, or at least, that's what they say.

"It's a pretty famous urban legend exaggeratingly depicting the men who fought on the shores of Japan before the Shipgirls."

"Yes… however, I'll tell you one thing. Whether or not you believe it is up to you, but The First Squadron is real, though most depictions of them are actually exaggerated and are pretty much fiction. But the fact remains, the First Squadron is entirely real."

"What does this have to do with the chance you're supposed to give me?"

"I'll have to tell you that when the time is right."

 _The hell is this, some sort of soap opera with perfect cuts on the most interesting parts?_

"Oh, come on. Don't leave me hanging… sir."

"Sorry, but that's just how it works. If you really want to know that badly… You'll have to fit in with society once again, first."

"How does this that relate to the chance?"

"Teamwork and control. It's an essential key to all operations. If you can't coordinate with other people, then I have the right to say that _omae wa mou shindeiru._ Also, if you don't keep that vengeful rage of yours in check, which almost broke your hilt, you might end up endangering not only yourself, but your teammates as well. You'll learn that during the duels. About that, if you think that this new age of warfare is all about commanding shipgirls then you are gravely mistaken. Not only do you have to command those girls, you'll find yourself having to fight alongside them as well. They're not as proficient in land as they are in air, so if we find an Abyssal refueling depot, it's drop time."

 _Wow… I guess the phrase "the plot thickens" can be applied here._

"So, before I'll train you on that stuff, I'll need to see you making progress on the school. Also, not a single soul must know we spoke about this. Remember, you and you alone know this info in the school. With that being said, go ahead and live your school life to the fullest. Don't sweat the stuff I told you about just now. Worry about the immediate future, you know, socialize, make new friends, comrades, etc. Well, I took too much of your time. Go ahead, your comrades are waiting."

"Thank you for everything, director." He replies with a bow and heads out back towards the tables again.

 _Knowing that Erika might still be alive in there puts a smile on my face. She's a tough nut to crack, after all. It might be slim, however… I'll do my best to finally see her once more…. However, like what the director said, I must worry about what's infront of me for now. I will drive my desires, not the other way around._

"Oh, Shiro! What took you so long! We finished eating while you were away, you know!" Hikari shouts as she sees him approaching.

"Most of the platoon members might be girls, Miyamoto, but don't think nobody will notice you fappi-" Shuu states jokingly with his trademark double-fingered glasses-adjustment gesture, but he is cut off by a somewhat embarrassed Shiro.

"That's not the case!"

 _Damnit. Why'd he have to bring up fapping. Shit, now all I have in my mind is how that sly Erika discovered my little pastime… The hell was I thinking back then anyway. Oh right… I was probably all like "Hey, this feels good! Let me do it again!" Or something like that. Well, I will make sure that won't happen here. Absolutely not, yeah. I have an image now._ He thinks to himself as his face turns jokingly determined.

"Oh, it seems I might've struck a nerve there." Shuu reacts. "I'll steer away from that topic then."

"Eew, Shiro-hentai! You do that gross stuff?"

"Heh, like you're _that_ innocent."

 _THE HELL DID I JUST SAY! SHIT. I MIGHT GET LABELED AS A FUCKING INSENSITIVE IDIOT HERE, SAVE ME, FATE!_

"Th-the hell are you saying, Shiro-hentai! I am a pure m-maiden!" She responds with a mix of stuttering and prideful tone while blushing.

 _Good, that wasn't as bad as I expected._

"Seems kinda odd coming from a 20 year old, huh?"

 _OH SHIT! STOP RUNNING OFF ALREADY YOU DAMNED MOUTH!_

"Y-you bastard! L-like you're any different!" She replies, blushing even harder now.

 _Ouch. Yeah, I wasn't lucky enough to have the privilege of… doing that to someone._

"You got me." He raises his hands on the air. "Though it's not like anyone else here is actually different, right? Correct me if I'm wrong." The rest of the platoon shakes their head.

"With this we might actually earn the moniker "Virgin Platoon", eh?"

"Not sure if we should take it as an insult or an honor, though." Erina adds this time, as most of the platoon laughs except Aya, who keeps silent. Shiro notices this and decides to ask her something.

"Yo, Aya, you've been quiet recently… What's wrong?"

"N-nothing… It's just t-the first time that I'm talking w-with people l-like this."

"They say there's a first time for everything. This is no exception."

"Y-you're right…"

The atmosphere around the platoon turns silent as they all look up at the night sky to see the moon above, its white presence in the black sky almost makes it look like a huge yin-yang emblem, perfectly contrasting each other. The cold air blows through the platoon as they look above, reminding Shiro of one thing.

 _My air conditioner… awaits me._

"It's getting a late now, isn't it." Erina asks.

"Yeah, it's 9:30 now. Time flies by, doesn't it? Well, let's head back, shall we?" Shiro responds as the rest of the platoon head towards the elevator, going down to the fourth floor to settle in their bunk beds after a nice hot shower. Moving closer to him, Erina, almost as tall as Shiro, leans in on his ears and whispers to him.

"Hey, you wanted to talk about something with me, right?"

"Yeah, I did." He responds.

"I know a good place we can do that, I guess."

The elevator dings, and the platoon exits, but Shiro and Erina remain inside, much to the confusion of the other members.

"Where are you guys going?" Hikari asks, a bit curious.

"We'll be back in just a bit." Shiro responds, pressing the ground floor per instructions from Erina. Arriving at the lobby, they head outside and Erina leads him to a small, almost hill-like elevation overlooking the track field, and they sit down behind a tree, indistinguishable due to the lack of sufficient lighting, but still enough to see each other's faces.

 _This place… feels nice._

"So, what was it you wanted to ask me?" Erina asks, leaning her back on the tree.

"Well, before that… why'd you choose this place?"

"It's relaxing, really. And it's the place where I sat down earlier, so… I kinda like it here now."

Meanwhile, the rest of the platoon are a bit uneasy about the fact that Shiro and Erina are alone somewhere, and Hikari is the first to express her concerns.

"Hey… what do you think they're doing out there?"

"Hikari… please have faith in your comrades…" Aya responds.

"But they're a guy and a girl… alone! Who knows what they'll do!"

"Oh come on, HIkari. You're overreacting. Are you really that concerned?"

"N-no! Who'd be concerned about that idiot Shiro anyway!?"

"I didn't say anything about Shiro."

"Wha- well, uhhh…."

"Oh, I see where this is going. Well, well. The great almighty Ozawa Hikari-san has fallen for a man with a sword. How unpredictable."

"What are you talking about!? There's no way I'd fall for that idiot… Hmp! I'm taking a shower!"

"Go ahead… Oh boy, this makes my day." Shuu laughs.

"Rakkun, you tease people way too much…" Aya reacts.

"Come on, anyone can see from a mile away what Ozawa thinks about Shiro. I'm just… uh… saying it creatively?" He replies with a laugh.

Meanwhile… back underneath the tree…

"I see… Well then, about the question… The current you… were you, always like this?"

There's nothing but silence for a while.

 _Did I tick her off?_

But Erina herself breaks that awkwardness.

"So, you saw through me, huh… True, I was trying to make a great first expression… Tell me, was it that obvious?"

"No, it wasn't. From their point of view, I'd say you were, in their eyes energetic and a fun person to be with. To me… well, it seemed like a façade. Like something is holding you back from doing that. You are fully capable of being the person we all saw. Yet, you choose not to. Tell me, what bothers you?"

"It seems odd for me to tell someone who I just met about my personal problems, but seeing as you'll be my comrade…"

"There's no problem at all. Trust me, I've done odder things."

"During my early years I was always… pressured. I wasn't able to be myself because of my family's regulations and such. I was expected to always become the best in anything, which made me become an object of jealousy for my classmates. I was always… hated, because I would overshadow everyone else. I wanted to be free-, but that objective became less apparent when I reached high school. Honor for the family, go home, sleep, eat, more honor for the family. It was always like that. I no longer cared for anyone else, I just wanted the day to be over with… Until the Atago incident happened."

 _Wait… she was affected by the Atago incident as well?_

"My dad was serving aboard the Atago when it was lost at sea. He was excommunicated along with my mother, even before I began going to school, since they defied the Yamamoto Family Code, so my grandfather raised me harshly, strictly adhering to the code. When I heard news that the Atago was lost, and that there was little to no chance of dad coming back at all… I was… devastated. It made me change my outlook on life… That painful shock that made me human once more, at least, a bit. I am trying to rebuild my life, and this academy has a way to do just that… but… my family… the code… I-I…" Erina couldn't stop getting emotional and started to cry, which shocks Shiro.

 _Oh, so that's why… Now, what do I do…_

He wraps his arm around her and rests her head upon his shoulder, literally giving her a shoulder to cry on. As he does this, he can't help but say a few words to at least help calm her down.

"Listen. Those family codes or something, it doesn't matter. What matters is that you follow the code that rests in your own heart. You create your own path, whether it will be of flowers or thorns is up to you. You are the master of your fate… The captain of your soul."

"C-cheesy… but thanks…"

"That doesn't sound insulting coming from someone who's crying on my shoulders."

"Y-yeah. I guess you're right…"

"To tell you the truth, someone I know served on the Atago as well. I'm pretty surprised to meet someone who has experienced such pain as well…"

 _Of course, I can't tell her about what the Director told me, but at least I have to help her, right?_

"M-me too…"

"If you need help, I'm here-, no… we're here. On behalf of the 25th platoon… Let me carry… half of your burden." He utters, reaching out his hand.

 _I hope I pulled that off correctly…_

"Y-yes! I look forward to working with you, Shiro!" Erina, wiping her tears off, shakes Shiro's hand. Suddenly a light, possibly from a flashlight illuminates the somewhat dark area they were sitting in, and upon inspection, the light's source is from a student wearing the standard uniform albeit with a read armband on his right arm, with the words "Council" written on it. Shiro assumes that it's the student council, and upon inspection of the time through his wrist watch, discovers that it's almost 11 already.

 _The hell…_

"I didn't want to disturb you freshmen since you were having a deep conversation, but I have to apologize. It's almost curfew time, and I'll have to ask you to return to your dorms." The student council member requests, and the two students stand up.

"O-of course. Let's go, Erina." With a nod, the two head back to the dorms, but are stopped as the council member calls them out.

"Oh, by the way, you actually made that Kusanagi part sound convincing. I commend you for that."

 _Damn, he noticed, huh. Well, of course. This is what you get after reading through an LN with a lot of spare time on my hands._

"Well, it fits." He responds.

"Indeed. Well, good night then. Oh, right. Assembly's tomorrow at 0800 hours. Be there, alright!"

"Of course!"

After entering the elevator Shiro and Erina talk about what to expect during their return to the dorm room, and upon entering the room itself, notice Shuu teasing the pajama-clothed Hikari a lot as Aya sleeps soundly on her bunk with her pajamas on.

"Well, what are you going to do if they actually did do that?"

"I-I'm going to scold them, of course! I-it's immoral!"

"Well, I don't know what to do with you… Why not ask them instead?" Shuu points to the newly arrived Erina and Shiro.

"What did we miss?" Shiro asks as Hikari runs straight towards Erina.

"Erina! What did this pervert do to you, huh? Are you okay? Did he harass you or something?"

"N-no…"

"Come on… stop thinking of me as a pervert already. Wasn't I already an idiot to you?"

"Ah right, thanks for reminding me, Baka-Shiro."

"I guess that's fine. Anyways, assembly's tomorrow at 8AM. Be sure to set your alarms, cause I ain't waking anyone up. Most likely, I'll be the one who needs to be woken up." He states as he hangs his sword on his bedframe, unbuttoning his uniform and pants and grabbing his towel."

"H-hey, the hell are you doing?" Hikari, with her eyes covered, asks the boxers-clad Shiro.

"Getting ready for a shower, of course. There's nobody using the bath, right?"

"Yeah, you're free to go." Shuu answers instead.

"Well, then. Erina, want to go first? I'll wait for you."

"S-sure! Thanks, Shiro!" She replies, carrying her towel and change of clothes inside the bath.

"No problem. What about you, Shuu?"

"I prefer to use the bathroom last because of some… problems… I may encounter." Shiro, understanding what he means, nods.

"I see… Must be rough, huh."

"Yeah. It's just a temporary thing, though. I ate some bad stuff back at home."

"That so? Good luck then."

"Thanks man."

 _I have a feeling that this'll turn out nicely. I'll just have to do what the director said and I'll have a chance to see Erika again, and help out Erina with her dad as well. Oh fate, how you pull our strings is a wonderful mystery._


	4. A Really Brief Welcome

**Sorry for the absolutely late update. Idealize is still alive and kicking.**

After letting Erina go first, Shiro then heads on towards the bathroom, wearing nothing but his boxers and a towel on his back, wearing it like some sort of cape. On his right hand is a small box with his personal bath materials, which includes his own soap and shampoo, as well as a toothbrush and toothpaste. On his left are his sleeping clothes. He places the contents of the box on the sink near the shower while also placing his clothes on the clothesline, slides the shower curtain to his right as he enters, then closes the door then the curtain up again. As he enters the shower area, he notices the tub on the side.

 _Ooh nice, hopefully I'll be able to dip in there someday, but there's someone waiting for me. Maybe soon._

Taking off his boxers and the towel, he turns on the shower and turns up the temperature, soaking his body with hot water after quite a long day. Meanwhile, outside the bathroom, the rest of the platoon, have a chat with themselves.

"Hey, Shuu, what're you doing?" Erina asks as Shuu continues to tap his smartphone.

"Just surfing the web, the free WiFi in this place is great. I'm just reading a couple of articles about those… "shipgirls" or something. Apparently they've set up a wiki of sorts about them."

"Shipgirls? Like the one who spoke with Shiro, right? The blue-haired one with floating drones of some sort?" Hikari joins in.

"Yeah, I saw the fight earlier, and I noticed them both. Anyway, about her, according to the data here, she's Destroyer Murakumo. If you guys want to see, here it is. I'll go prepare my clothes." Shuu, still in his uniform, utters as she holds out his smartphone to Erina, who starts reading the article. He approaches his bag placed near a wooden cabinet near Shiro's bed, and notices his sword hanging from the frame, complete with its sheath and ornaments. With a grin on his face, he takes the sword and hangs it on his waist, and then chuckles a bit as a couple of ideas pass his mind.

"Rakkun, what are you doing, that's Shiro's swor-" Aya asks with concern, but gets cut off.

"It's okay; he won't get mad… probably."

"That doesn't exactly fill me with confidence…"

"It's all in goodwill, don't worry… Well then… time to put this into action." Shuu utters as he oves towards the bathroom's door, then knocking on it twice.

"Hey, Shiro, are you done playing with yourself yet?"

 _The hell is this guy up to now?_

"Shut up. I'm almost done."

"So you **are** playing with yourself. There's a time and place for everything, you know."

"Stop talking about that, there are girls around here, you know?"

"I speak not of heresy, but mere truth."

 _Who the hell am I talking to, Shakespeare?_

"Calm down, you're gonna make my nose bleed with your poetic shit."

"Hurry up, then."

"I know." As Shiro replies, Shuu draws his sword with his right hand and extends it all the way back, pointing the edge of the blade towards the door. He gestures his left hand near the blade, adjusts his stance, and it becomes apparent what he's doing.

It's the Zero Stance. He's imitating the Gatotsu...

In front of the bathroom.

"Hey, Shuu…" Aya tries to warn him again, but she gets cut off… yet again.

"Shh…"

 _Hmm. This guy keeps saying I'm doing myself in the bath… damn, now I can't get that memory off my mind. Well then, time to finish up here and enjoy a night with the air conditioning system. Just gonna dry my hair with the towel, wipe off the droplets here, and put these on… Feels like home, somewhat._

He then puts on his clothes consisting of a plain, yellow shirt and knee-length shorts. Leaving his bath accessories on the sink, he slings the towel on his left shoulder and his uniform neatly folded on his right hand. As he prepares to exit, he is surprised to see Shuu with a huge grin on his face…

Carrying his sword…

…and doing the Zero Stance.

 _What…_

" **User of the Nagumo double-edged art, Nagumo Shuu, will now Slay! Evil! Immediately!"**

"Hey… what the hell are you doing with my sw-"

" **You aren't fit to be rust on my blade, so don't even think about it."**

"Wait… don't tell me you're trying to be Kusanag-"

" **I'm going to show you a slash so brutal my sword won't even be bloodied!"**

 _If you didn't pull off both Rurouni Kenshin and Taimadou Gakuen at the same time I'd be pretty mad at you for playing around with my sword, but now, I'll just have to say… well played._

"At around this part, someone should be telling you not to make such a scary face. Preferably someone who's imitating your little sister's voice."

"I don't have a little sister, sorry."

"You failed to meet my expectations. Commit seppku to restore your family's honor."

"I decline." Shuu replies jokingly, waving Shiro's sword around.

"Nothing's more honorable than wastefully taking your life by cutting your guts off with a dagger as some guy slices your neck. Now stop playing with my sword and go take a bath or something."

"Alright, alright." The chuckling Shuu responds as he hands over the white, red-lace hilted katana to Shiro, who heads on towards his bunk. 

"So… uh, has everyone decided on their bunk spots yet?" Shiro asks, climbing atop his bunk near the air conditioner.

"Yeah, I'm with Aya, we'll be sleeping together on this one, Shuu's on the single bed and Hikari's right beneath you." Erina responds, holding Shuu's smartphone. 

"W-wha, who decided on that!?" The somewhat furious Hikari asks, standing up from the small chair to face Erina, who's sitting right beside her.

"Well… you did place your bag there earlier, didn't you…?"

"I-it was just temporary!"

"Wait, Hikari, why do you detest sleeping beneath me?" Shiro asks this time.

"I… uh, I-I don't want you doing weird things to me at night, you pervert!"

 _Not this again… I shouldn't have asked that._

"You know damn well I wouldn't do anything like that. Well, if I did want to, I couldn't, because I'm up here and it woul-"

"Look, see! He does want to do weird things to me!"

 _Are you serious right now?!  
_

"Let me finish, alright? Listen. I won't do anything, I swear. And even if I did, I'd probably be caught, so keep that in your mind and rest well."

"I-I'll take your word for it, then! If I catch you in the act, I'll never forgive you! Really! Never!"

 _Who am I talking to right now, Tohsaka Rin?_

"Yeah, yeah. Trust me."

"Hmp!" She responds, turning away from Shiro.

 _That conversation felt too clichéd I could literally predict how it ended. Well, that's what I get for reading too many novels, I guess._

He then lies down on his back on the bunk's mattress, unsheathing his sword a bit to reveal five kanji inscriptions, read as the "Hirihoukenten" which, when translated, gave the meaning that "Foolishness is not above Sensibility, Sensibility is not above Law, Law is not above Authority, and Authority is not above Divinity."

 _Heh. Dad gave me a long-ass sermon after engraving these, but it's worth it. Speaking of dad, I wonder what he's doing right now… I better sleep for now; I got a long day ahead._ As he thinks of this, he draws his smartphone and sets a low-volume alarm for 0430, which will hopefully wake him up early.

"Hey guys, we should sleep for now, we don't want to be late for the assembly tomorrow, eh?" He recommends, sitting up from the mattress.

"Good idea…" Hikari responds with a yawn. "Good night…" she utters before falling face down on the bed.

 _Looks like she was pretty sleepy. Well, dueling is no easy task, after all. Looking at her closely... she looks kinda cute- wait, what am I thinking… time it's time to sleep… but first…heh._

"Oy Shuu, better hurry up in there!" Shiro shouts loud enough, for Shuu to hear.

"I'm done already." He replies, emerging from the bathroom.

"Oh, thought you were playing with yourself, haha."

"Touché." Shuu replies, gesturing with his glasses.

"Well then, see you guys in the morning. Good night."

"Good night!" The rest respond in unison.

 _This… might actually be pretty fun. Also… that thing the Director talked to me about… what could it have really been? I have to find out. I have to find Erika… I'll definitely find her… But that's for another day. I'll leave tomorrow's problems to tomorrow me._

Meanwhile, Director Yashiro heads on towards the adjacent Naval Base, passing through saluting guards as he does so. With his signature pipe in hand, he proceeds towards the admiralty building, where uniformed men are discussing something in front of a screen, displaying a map with small circles and icons as the men continue their dialogues.

"How's it going?" the Director asks, to which one of the uniformed men respond.

"We established contact with Germany again; they reported that one of the Blohm & Voss' packages has been intercepted, along with a couple of modified samples we sent to them for improvement, also a couple of Italian packages as well. The convoy's distress signal was sent near the Solomon Islands, near Vella Gulf. And to make matters worse, they've spotted what looks like a supply base."

"Supplies in Vella Gulf, huh. We haven't gauged enemy forces there yet, right?" he sighs. "You know, this is making me wonder why Russia isn't letting Germany's deliveries in through land."

"They're way too cautious. I don't know why, but countries around the globe are pretty much securing their borders. It's not like we're fighting against an army here, but yeah. Anyways, Vella's still an unknown area for now, but the packages are of absolute importance. What should we do, Yashiro?"

"I think I have a plan, Reynolds. Designate that area as an E sector. Let's see if the Kaigun Gakuen can deliver again."

"Heh, going to set up a little event on your school again?"

"Yeah, I've got a couple of good first-years added to the ranks, maybe they'll be able to help us. But other than that, I got something in mind as well, not just for our current situation..."

"What would that be?"

"As you can see, we're short on shipgirls for now, and we need some serious firepower. Actual ships won't cut it; they're too big of a target."

"I know that all too well, Yashiro. Kure taught us a hard lesson on fighting these guys with our ships, which is why we did the Te- Wait; don't tell me… you're planning to do _that_ again?"

"I am. The First Squadron did it, so can these new guys."

"You know we stopped doing it for a reason…why the Kantai Project got substituted for it." Reynolds replies with a smaller voice now.

"I do know. I know it all too well… They substituted one of the best chances we had for a swift victory with quite a slow method."

"Listen, that project-"

"I know some of the guys disagree with it. But you should know that it saved our asses during the first wave… We can't keep relying on the shipgirls… especially with an… unreliable method of getting them like this."

"I understand where you're coming from, Yashiro… but it's simply too dangerous… and The First Squadron's members were… unique, to say the least. How would you find people like them now?"

"Zura and I have… a few people in mind." The Director responds with a grin.

"That grin on your face… it's scary."

" _There's a moment that changes a life when… we do something that no one else can_ …"

 _Eh… where is this music… coming from…  
_

" _And the path's that we've taken will lead us_ …"

"One final stand _…"_ Shiro slowly mumbles as he starts to open his eyes to the dark room with only a faint light in sight and with the somewhat faint sound of the vocals of the song _I May Fall_ being played, which he discovers to be coming from his own smartphone.

 _Ah crap… forgot to change the alarm tone again… Great way to wake up, though._

"Nice music you got there. I didn't know you followed _that_ franchise." Shiro, still a bit sleepy, hears the comment, and discovers that it came from Shuu, who's also awake with his phone in hand.

"It's got a pretty interesting plot and a good soundtrack as well, if you don't mind the language difference... Anyways, I guess I'm not the only early one around here, huh." Shiro responds this time, climbing down from his bunk slowly to hopefully not disturb Hikari beneath him.

"I got used to it. While I'm at it, thought I might as well start a little routine, Saitama-style."

"Hah, that's probably impossible, but why don't you join me for a couple of laps down the track?"

"Yeah, I'll try my best to keep up with you."

"Don't worry, I won't go too fast."

After donning their jackets, as well as Shiro's sword, the duo head off from the room slowly as to avoid disturbing the rest of the platoon, making their way past the lobby and off to the circular clearing within the school grounds, which are still a bit dark. With his smartphone in his hand and earphones on his… well, ears, he jogs side by side with Shuu, who's obviously not too fond of jogging as he struggles to keep up.

" _I may fall, but not like this, it won't be by your hand~"_ Shiro's earphone blares as he jogs on.

"Hah… hah… this is… quite… tiring…" the somewhat exhausted Shuu states, raising his glasses with two of his fingers as they pass through a fountain. With his volume at 50%, Shiro hears this, and chuckles.

"Somehow I knew you weren't the… physical… type of guy."

"I will not take that… as an insult… since it's true…"

"You want to, uh… take a rest for something? There's a bench over there."

"Oh… yeah, thanks…"

"Let me grab some water from that vending machine, I'll be back."

 _Well, I'll let him rest for a while… lucky me, I brought some change with me today._

Shiro then walks towards the vending machine with his right arm rested on the katana's hilt, stopping near a blue-colored machine with plenty of choices to choose from. He then picks two pieces of bottled water as he inserts his coins on the slot, then, as he waits; he stares at the clock tower right beside the main school building.

 _5000 yen says the student council's HQ is in there… making a bet to myself again. Huh, things never change._

"Enjoying the view?" A soft, female voice speaks out from his right. As he looks on, he notices a girl with long-flowing black hair sitting on a bench, donning the university's type B black-colored uniform with the same familiar gold ornaments, except hers has a red armband on her right arm.

 _Hmm? Wait, that armband... don't tell me... She's from the Student Council? That's a pretty cliched uniform by now... Ah crap, I'm getting chills just by looking at her. Such cold and mysterious personality… straight out of a LN I know if you ask me. But more importantly, why did I not notice her…? Must be the light._

"I, uh… umm… just wondering what's inside that tower." He responds, stuttering.

 _What is this… pressure… of sorts? I can't even speak properly…_

"Hmm, I see. The student council office, along with the faculty, is in there."

 _I can't believe I guessed it… I need to meet up with whoever designed this place, guy's a genius._

"You look somewhat pleased when I said that. Do you find something funny?" she asks, putting even more pressure to Shiro.

"No, I mean, well, uh, actually yes."

 _Talk straight, damn it!_

"So it seems. What would that be, then?" The girl asks, in her usual cold tone.

"I seem to have predicted what was inside the tower." Shiro responds, without the stutter from earlier.

 _That's it… keep it going…_

"I see. Well then, I have to continue doing my rounds... thank you for your time…" she replies as Shiro starts walking back to Shuu, but he gets stopped as she continues to speak.

"…Miyamoto Shiro."

 _How the…_

"How do you know my name-"

"I am not the president of this school's Student Council for nothing, mister Miyamoto. I look forward to meeting you in the field of battle." The president replies once more as she starts to walk away from Shiro's vision.

 _Field of battle… what is she talking about…? I hope for my sake everyone's not too serious around here..._

With two pieces bottled water on his hands, Shiro then rushes back to Shuu, who is now tinkering with his smartphone, laid back on the bench with his hoodie on and earphones on full blast. As he notices Shiro, he takes off the black-colored earphones and stows his smartphone back to his pocket, putting out his hand to receive the bottled water.

"Took you long enough, captain." He jokingly complains.

"I met someone on the way. Anyway, what's with the title?"

"I pretty much see you with a lot of girls lately... what, you're trying to build up a harem, eh? I'm guessing you probably won't evem spare shipgirls from your "great conquest", oh great Daimyo of the Harem."

"That sounds pretty ironic coming from a guy whose nickname is Raku."

"Oh, that nickname. It's because of a promise I made ten years ago…"

"You're shitting me, right?"

"Nope. It's because I met a girl one day… and we made a promise to each other."

 _Smells like bullshit, but hey, sounds interesting._

"Go on."

"So yeah, I met her, and we became close friends, then one day, she was moving out of town, and there I was, a bit sad, so I chased her down and told her that we'll meet again someday, and then she said yes as I…. dried my tears. After that, you just wasted a minute of your time listening to me pulling a story out of nowhere."

"God damn it, Shuu." Shiro comments as both men laugh. "Alright, let's go back, I guess this is enough jogging for now…"

"I was waiting for you to say that. Let's go."

With his hand resting on the hilt of his sword, Shiro, alongside Shuu, walk back towards the dorm building, but the somewhat curious swordsman takes a pause and looks back towards the direction of the clock tower, seemingly thinking about something.

 _I… might drop by later. Who knows…_

After returning back to the dorms, taking their baths, and suiting up with their Type-B black-colored uniforms, the entire 25th platoon, along with the rest of the students, gather at the large gymnasium building inside the school campus, with Shiro and company lining up and taking their seats on the white plastic-made chairs in the middle of the gym designated for first-years.

Shiro observes his surroundings, noticing a few other first-year platoons just behind him, staring at both himself and Hikari intently, possibly because of the duel fiasco on the first day, making him smirk a bit.

 _Looks like these guys are a bit wary of me now... maybe I shouldn't have went hi-profile after all... this feels... weird._

A bit of microphone disturbance fills the airwaves as Director Yashiro, on the middle of the stage, taps and adjusts the mic accordingly, gaining the attention of the students as he does so, as he observes when the bustling gym's athmosphere was shot down to silence in just a few seconds.

"Well then. New students of the Yokosuka Kaigun Gakuen, welcome to the fray. You've already seen that things aren't always... normal here. We've got a lot of things going on in the school that'll makes your experience quite enjoyable. Of course, it's designed to help you on the road to the Admiralty, but not everyone gets that prestigious title of Teitoku. Some of you might be Rear-Admirals, under direct command of the Teitoku. Or some of you might become part of the Maintenance Crews, if we find your skills fitting. Maybe some of you will even be part of the Logistics Division, and either serve in the base or help me out in the academy. And of course, those of you with the capabilities to fight on both land and sea effectively will be enlisted in the Special Operations Group." The director takes a small pause, and prepares to continue again.

"However, I know most of you really are aiming for the chance of becoming the Teitoku of the Yokosuka Naval Base. You could say this entire school is comparable to a _lottery._ But rather than luck, it all depends on your skills and abilities. Before we proceed to the official induction and starter-turnover process, I'd like everyone, including the second-years, to look at the screen behind me. I'll give a little briefing on our current situation."

The director then pulls out a small remote from his greyish-black colored slacks' pocket, aiming it towards a suspended projector and pressing a button as it turns on and displays a map with a couple of circle-like shapes with letters below it.

"This is Vella Gulf." he says as he points his signature pipe towards it. "A German convoy from Blohm & Voss headed for Yokosuka got sent off-track to Vella. After that, recent reports say that they've stumbled upon a heavily defended Abyssal supply route, and we have reason to believe that one of their refueling depots is nearby. We haven't heard from them for a while, so we have to work with what we have. Starting today, the Vella Gulf Event map is in effect, so go ahead, second-years. You can go back to your dorms for today, consider it an emergency preparation time of sorts. The network is already opened up, so feel free to share your compos." the Director finishes as the second-year students stand up and head for the exit, leaving only the first-years.

"Of course, you might be thinking..."What's all this for?" Well, lemme tell ya. Events are pretty much based on either historical missions or current events. We take data from your battles and formulate strategies with it, where we'll choose the best fleet composition, equipment, and stuff like those. Enemy fleet data is gathered through reconnaisance, so they're somewhat accurate to the actual enemies the shipgirls will be facing. Speaking of shipgirls, look who I have with me today. Come on now, don't be shy!" He utters as five girls emerge from the back of the stage carrying small, phone-like apparatuses, some with odd hair colors- somewhat a trademark of shipgirls already.

"They are Fubuki, Murakumo, Sazanami, Inazuma, and Samidare." He introduces the five girls as he points to each one while saying their names. "These girls are the starter five, I'm sure you've heard their story already. Well, they have with them your Virtual Command Modules and your very first Physical Card, which can in turn be scanned by your own module to be registered. Oh, and you have to scan your ID through the module to make it work first."

 _Seems simple enough._

"In case you're confused about how they work, Physical Cards can only be retrieved through special means, such as event rewards, duel wagers, or squad combat rewards. You can scan them to add the ship for your Virtual HQ, which is the feature of the module that simulates the admiralty experience. However, Physical Cards are used mostly for Clash Duels, which are different from the Virtual PvP, and before you ask, yes, we did change some of the terminologies for a fresh look."

 _Looks more like someone forgot what they're actually called, though._ Shiro thinks. _Duel wagers seem interesting, though. I can probably get some of the sought-after cards if I win some battles._ _But with an event just announced, I guess levelling my ships would be top priority. Need to figure out how they work, first._

"Okay, now to start your formal induction, may I request everyone to line up in front of the shipgirl of your choice. Don't worry, there's not much of a difference with their card stats, though this does not fully reflect their... real-life capabilities, of course."

Even as they merely stand and look at the director, the students could feel sharp stares from the shipgirls slowly piercing Yashiro after his comment, but he seems impervious to it.

"Ehem, so uh, as I was saying, feel free to choose depending on your personal preferences and their appearances, or stats. Your choice, but do keep in mind that your starter shall be the symbol of the start of your admiralty career. Choose wisely."

Lines began piling up in front of the five shipgirls standing near the edge of the stage platform as they began to hand out VCM's and their own physical cards, complete with an artists rendition of themselves, equipment slots, personal quotation, and stats underneath. Shiro notices a somewhat longer line in front of Samidare and Inazuma, while the rest had somewhat equal lengths. He also notices a lot of interaction between the students and the shipgirls, which hogged the line a bit. Then, he notices Destroyer Murakumo's polearm, along with her light-bluish hair.

 _Is this what she meant by "see you tomorrow"? Well, whatever. She seems like a good choice._

The 25th platoon then began to split up to their corresponding ship of choice, exchanging glances as they notice each other. Surprisingly, Shiro was the only one in the platoon to have chosen Murakumo as a starter ship, much to his confusion.

 _I thought they'd have the same choice as me... oh well._

After a few minutes, Shiro, who settled at the back of the line for Murakumo, finally reaches the blue-haired shipgirl, with her trademark polearm slung right behind her as she hands out a VCM and her own PhysCard to him.

"So, we meet again... eh... Mura...kumo.?" Shiro asks, struggling as he reads the card.

"What, you already forgot my name **that** quick? You airhead!?"

"What're you getting mad at me for? I mean, it's a pretty hard reading."

 _Man, something about her really reminds me of Hikari... What could that be... Oh, that's right. They're both tsundere. Heh. If I said this to just anyone I would take tons of flak for comparing them with a trait that probably doesn't even exist or is absolutely rare and is confined within the barriers of fictional reality. Luckily my mind is a safe haven. This feels... sad though._ _Eh, whatever._ Shiro thinks to himself as he chuckles a bit.

"What are you laughing for, huh?" the destroyer brashly asks.

"Nothing, just remembered something." He responds, resting his hand on the hilt of his sword on impulse, which he quickly regrets doing.

 _Crap, I let off some body language... But if I move it away now, she'd notice that I'm trying not to let her notice, but if I don't move it, she'll actually notice... eh, whatever. I'll just let it stay put there._ As he complicates the situation, Murakumo notices Shiro's sword, and remembers something.

"Ah, that's right, I have someone to introduce you to."

 _Introduce me to? Who could that be...?_

"And? Who is it?"

"I'll introduce you two when we get there, come on." she replies as she drags Shiro by the arm towards the back exit of the gym, barely giving him time to stow away the VCM and PhysCard in his pocket as he notices the incredible grip strength this girl has.

 _Damn, she's strong. Do I even lift?_

Unknown to both of them, the Director noticed them both, and decides to follow the two outside, but not before giving a small speech as he takes his abrupt leave.

"Well, with that all said and done, you are now officially students of the Yokosuka Kaigun Gakuen. Formal classes will start tomorrow, starting with a run-through of the squadron battles and one-on-one duels, then a few introductory classes from your teachers. Me included. The classrooms already have your names posted, drop by if you want to see. Well, I must go. Enjoy the rest of the day." He utters, somehwat swiftly as he re hoists the mic on a stand and exits the gym through the same path Shiro and Murakumo took. Unbeknownst to Shiro, the 25th is already returning to the dorms without him.

"A-are you sure we can live Shiro behind?" Aya asks, timidly as ever.

"It's fine, he may be an idiot, but he can still find his way home." Hikari replies, brashly as ever as they exit the gym through the main exits and head off towards the dormitories.

Meanwhile, Murakumo leads Shiro near the borders of the Naval Base and the Naval Academy, as observed with the barbed wires and fences all around the area.

"So... who is this person, exactly? What do you both want with me?"

"Oh nothing, I just saw that you're proficient with a sword..."

Before the blue-haired destroyer could finish, a figure walks out from behind a huge rock, as Shiro looks closer, he makes out a few extraordinary features, two flying ear-pieces, similar to Murakumo's, and a weird-looking sword. And upon closer inspection...

 _It's a shipgirl._

Shiro gets the full picture of a girl with short purple hair, neon purple-glowing earpieces, black uniform with a purple-colored tie, purple sword, and even a purple eyepatch.

 _What's up with all this purple..._

"I'd like you to meet Light Cruiser Tenryuu."

"Tenryuu, huh. 1919, Slower than a contemporary destroyer, light AA suite, pretty much obsolete by the start of the Pacific war." Shiro utters from the top of his head, having remembered most warships of the Pacific theater due to his naval preferences.

"So, you're the guy Murakumo wanted me to spar against, eh? You seem pretty knowledgeable... Fufufu... Ya scared?"

"Not really. I still want to spar against you."

"Ya seem like an arrogant snot."

 _This... is going to be a fun exercise._

"Not arrogant enough to challenge you with riggings, but I can see where this is going. I can't fight with this, though." Shiro states as he taps his katana's hilt.

"I gotcha covered." The cruiser Tenryuu replies as she tosses a compound polymer-made Katana, similar to the one Shiro used against Hikari. "We use the same training equipment as you do, so I made sure to bring you one. Now lets see whatcha got, swordsman."

"Your sword, though. Is it made of the same material as well?"

"'Course it is, ya dummy! I wouldn't want to cut you in half with my real sword, now."

 _Ooooh. Scaaaaary._ The smirking swordsman thinks to himself as he rotates the polymer Katana around his wrist.

Unknown to the three of them, Yashiro sits down on one of the smaller rocks undetected, having a clear view of the duel unfolding.

"Crap, I forgot to bring food. No matter, let's see what you're really capabale of, Miyamoto." the director mumbles to himself.

 _Got caught up in yet another situation... And I don't know whether I should be grateful or not. This one's on Murakumo, so you can rest easy, fate. I won't be blaming you this time around._


	5. Swordsman : Contracts

**Once more into the fray.**

 **I'm going to try to write a lot more frequently now.**

 **~Idealize.**

* * *

The rocky area around the Academy falls silent. The Light Cruiser Tenryuu is primed for an attack, Shiro stands guard with his polymer sword, while Murakumo and the Director silently look on. Tension fills the air. The people present knows that a duel of epic proportions will take place. Now it's only a matter of who strikes first.

 _Remember your training, Shiro. Know the enemy and know yourself. Let them strike first if you have doubts. Focus all movements into one defensive stroke. Be prepared for anything. Strike hard, not first. Conserve energy and let the enemy drain theirs._

"Ya' better be ready, sword-kid." The somewhat brash cruiser taunts, pointing her purple-dyed polymer sword.

 _Don't get swayed. Keep holding your ground. Look right into the enemy's eyes. Force them on the aggressive. Keep your grip firm. Track down that stare. What's behind that eyepatch, anyway..._

"Well then, if ya' don't want to go first..." She speaks once more, before somehow just disappearing in front of Shiro's eyes, only to reappear a lot closer after a second of blur in the swordsman's perspective.

 _She's fast...!_

But before she can deliver a strike with her sword, Shiro compensates for her speed and steps back, raising his polymer katana upwards and catching the cruiser's sword mid-air, despite her actual location being quite a blur to him.

 _But her sword movements are somewhat... sluggish. Though I don't want to get caught by that, I bet that packs a punch._

"Not too shabby, kiddo." She comments, strafing back from her position.

 _Do not get swayed. Focus on your enemy's style. Analyze the situation, make compensations, if necessary. Never respond to provocation. Re-establish your defenses and hold on. Make plans for a counterattack._

"Seems like you're in it already. I like that."

 _My guess is she's about to get serious. Let's do this._

Once again, the purple-clothed cruiser charges with amazing speed, somehow dissipating into a blur as she moves through Shiro's line of sight, which almost makes the swordsman lose track of her, but as she prepares to deliver a slash, Shiro tries to parry the strike but catches it with the hilt of his sword instead, with surprise written in his face. He shoves the blade off, creating a few sparks as he retreats to a much more comfortable position, wiping sweat off from his forehead.

 _Damn it, it may have looked like one of Kurogane's guards, but truth is I miscalculated. How the hell did that happen... I had everything checked... I-_

But before he could finish monologuing to himself, the cruiser dissipates from his sight once more, leaving only his instincts to react as he struggles to get back into his stance, visibly panting as he does so.

"Looks like you've bit off more than you can chew, Miyamoto... or could you be holding back?" The Director asks himself, still hidden.

 _Shit, nothing's working... how the hell... Is this the power... of these Shipgirls?... Damn, I need to calm down, my minds being bogged down..._

As he formulates a plan of action, a voice can be heard, shouting right in front of him.

"It's over!" the cruiser shouts, with her sword held high, ready to strike like a coiled viper leaping upon it's distraught prey.

 _Damn it... I didn't want to use this... but looks like I have to throw it all away, huh._

Unprepared, yet ready. Such was Shiro's situation as he spots the cruiser's sword bearing down upon him. He merely stands his ground and sternly raises his sword, pointing it towards the charging cruiser, but she evades easily by shifting her weight. Noticing the slight alteration in the sword's trajectory, he takes the opportunity and falls straight down to the ground, effectively evading what would've been the final blow, albeit a bit dishonorably. He rolls up and takes a few steps back again, regaining a bit of his composure.

"Heh, what's wrong? You scared?" The brash Tenryuu asks, waving her sword arround appropriately.

 _Shit. Never thought I'd had to go Autobots on that one. Looks like it can't be helped, then._

"Hmm, kid still has some energy left in him... I'll have to see where this ends up." Yashiro utters again.

Shiro then changes his footing, and the grip on his sword as well, letting his left shoulder face Tenryuu while he positions his sword just beside his sheath, near his actual sword. He begins to take a few deep breaths, closes his eyes and prepares to empty his mind, but not without one last thought.

 _This is going to be tiring._

He sighs.

He takes one last deep breath.

The peculiar stance causes Tenryuu to stand her ground and prepare for an attack, but as she sharply eyes Shiro, the swordsman appears to have instataneously phased right in front of her as he leaves an afterimage on his last position, with his sword in full swing towards her head, leaving behind a gust of wind and specks of dust as the polymer katana's motion is stopped just right next to the cruiser neck, leaving her no time to counter. The expression on the cruiser is suddenly changed from one filled to the brim with determination to one that has complete and utter shock written on it, same goes for Murakumo overseeing the match.

"Miyamoto Double-Edged art, Saisho no Hiken: Maboroshi."

 _I guess I pulled it off right, despite the delay... but damn it. I went overboard. Ah well._

"Thanks for the spar." Shiro utters before standing up from his slightly bent position as he prepares to place his polymer sword back to the ground, but he is interrupted by a shout.

"We're not done here yet!" The frustrated cruiser charges towards him, but as she does so, time once again slows down in Shiro's perception. His surroundings turn monochrome black and white, while Tenryuu is covered in some sort of red-colored "aura". He also spots Yashiro behind a few obstacles, marked with a white aura behind him, indicating neutrality. The time stagnation allows him to face the approaching cruiser quick enough and blocks the slash, followed by a swift disarm as he flings the purple sword up in the air with sheer force. The cruiser is left shocked once again in the wake of an awesome display of power. On the sidelines, Murakumo looks on intently, a bit shocked as well.

"H-how did you..." The cruiser asks, stuttering.

"Block that attack? Well, I have some sort of... sixth sense, I developed from m childhood and training. It's called the Eagle Sense. It allows me to "feel" someone's intent, even if they're not actually in my line of sight, and even if they are, I can easily determine it, with the help of enhanced perception that seemingly makes time run slower for me." 

_Named it that half because I used to hunt and memorize birds, and half because I played Assassin's Creed. Good days. Now if only I can have some sort of hidden blade in the arena..._

"T-then, you could've easily won this match earlier!"

"I couldn't activate it. It's hit and miss, really. I haven't fully mastered the Eagle Sense yet."

 _Of course, that isn't the case... but I can't tell her that... right? eh...? Damn it, conscience, can't you let me off the hook this time? I'm lying for her dignity, not mine..._

"B-but I definitely had you on the ropes earlier! Looks like you can't beat me without tricks!"

Shiro's left eye twitches.

 _Calm down... Let her keep her pride, even if you may lose yours. I want to protest so bad, but I gotta keep my head cool._

"Seems so. I look forward to sparring with you again, soon."

"No more tricks next time, alright?"

Shiro's right eye twitches this time.

 _Stop calling my abilities as tricks..._

"Let's just see." The swordsman states as he leaves behind the polymer sword, heading back towards the dorms, but not before stopping for a bit. "Oi, Murakumo, anything else?" The destroyer slightly loosens her grip on the lance-like thing she's carrying.

"N-nothing more for now... T-thanks for your time..." She replies, stuttering as well.

 _What's wrong with her...? Ah, probably nothing. Man, I'm tired..._

Shiro then continues walking back towards the campus and the dorms, tired from the spar as he notices Yashiro catching up to him, tipping his pipe slightly downwards.

"So that's what being a Miyamoto is like, huh. Tell me, can your relatives or clanmates perform the same stuff you did?"

"Arts like those are passed down only to a select few... namely me and..."

 _Erika._

"It's okay if you don't want to tell, kid, It's none of my buisness. Well then, get some rest, and maybe clear some of the early maps, if you like. If you rush fast enough, you might be able to do the event on Easy."

"Understood." He replies tiredly.

"You seem pretty exhausted, kid. Hightail it back to the dorms, then. I'll be having a talk with them." The director says as he walks towards the two girls.

"H-he's strong... Isn't he..." The blue haired destroyer asks Tenryuu, who is exhausted from the match.

"I bet'cha even Kiso would have a hard time with him... if he uses his tricks, that is..."

"You still think that was his tricks? That was his true abilities in play, Tenryuu-san."

"B-but he said-"

"You don't understand chivalry, do you? Of course he still wants you to feel good..."

"T-that little-"

"O~hoh, still can't get over that loss, Tenryuu?" The director teasingly asks the cruiser.

"D-director!? I-it's not like that... I'm just... shocked. Y-yeah!"

"True, true. He is strong, after all. It wouldn't be an overstatement to say that he's a master of swords."

"I-I'll definitely beat him... for sure!"

"You're welcome to try..."

"It seems my interests were well-placed." Says Murakumo, rubbing her chin."

"Hmm? Could it be, you have a thing for him or something?"

"N-n-no! It's nothing l-like that! I-" she coughs. "I am merely interested about his abilities!"

"Mhm." The director responds with a smile. 

Meanwhile, back at the dorm lobbies, Shiro tiredly stumbles towards the elevator, exhausted after procuring one of the Hiken arts during the duel. Laying his arm on his sword once again, he leans on the elevator corner as he heads up to his floor, sleepily and all. Upon reaching his floor, he walks slowly towards his room and opens the door, unlocked despite there being nobody around. He can no longer be bothered to climb his bunk bed, and lays down face first towards the bed beneath his: Hikari's.The air conditioner left on quickly puts him to sleep face first on Hikari's pillow with his hands in an awkward position in front of him.

 _I'll just... wake up... soon..._

Just as he lays down on the bed, he opens his eyes.

What he sees is a mere white space in front of him. Below, above, to his sides, simply white. It was as if a reverse abyss, but like it's darker counterpart, this white "void" was still filled with nothingness. Until a voice echoed throughout the void.

"Hello there." A warped, somewhat distorted but audible voice uttered, undistinguishable in gender.

 _Eh? Where'd that come from...?_

…

 _Wait a minute.._

"Hey, am I... dead?" Shiro asked the form-less voice.

"No you're not, silly. Why would you die? Anyways, you are inside your consciousness."

"My... consciousness?"

"Yes, well, basically, you're inside yourself."

"L-lewd." The swordsman replied jokingly.

"The fact that you made such a connection makes you lewd as well... which makes _me_ lewd."

"Eh... huh?"

 _Deep shit, bro._

"Well, I am a part of you, after all. Specifically, I'm a part of you. And no, it's not deep shit, _bro._ "

"You can read my mind, too? Well, I guess that's a given..."

"Your thoughts are my thoughts, too."

"Yeah, I kinda get it. So, why am I here?"

"Well, you woke me up, didn't you?"

"I... woke you up?"

"Don't you remember? You awakened me a few hours earlier."

"A few hours... How do I even wake up my consciousness? Anyway, I was fighting someone during that time."

"Exactly."

 _What..._

"I can tell you're puzzled."

"I'm not even following anymore. Did I do drugs or something?"

"You're not tripping. Listen, you seriously don't remember what I am?"

"Huh, I thought you were my consciousness."

"No I'm not, I said we were in _your_ consciousness, and I am a part of you!"

"You know... it's difficult to follow what you're saying when I can't even see you."

"... Fine."

White smoke appears in front of the standing Shiro, covering a small area near him with translucent mist seemingly coming out from nowhere. Coughing from the smoky effects, he covers his mouth and nose with his hand. The smoke slowly dissipates and reveals a black suit-and-tie clad girl with yellow hair tied in a medium-length ponytail reaching just below her well-endowed bust alongside two bangs tied with red, cross shaped ornaments. Coupled with her bluish-green eyes, she looked stunning.

"... Are you trying to be Saber or something?"

"N-no I'm not! Besides, this is what you prefer, right!? I should know! I'm a part of you! Anyway, I don't even look like Saber, you know? Try again."

 _I already know who you're trying to be. I know myself more than anyone, even myself. Wait, isn't that contradictory? Eh, whatever. Let me have fun with myself first._

"Wha-"

"Is there even a part of me that's _this_ tsundere?"

"P-probably so! Since I-I'm... H-hey, wait a minute, I'm not tsun nor dere for yo- myself!"

"Glad I didn't fully adapt you, whichever part of me you are. Besides, you're character's not actually supposed to be tsundere... no wait... I think I remember something... Ah, nevermind, she was a bit tsun, after all... not to mention _something else._ "

"You- Ah, forget it! You still haven't remembered?"

"That's what you get for trying to appear as someone I like."

"Shut it, you 2D lover, get a life." The mysterious girl retorted.

"Stop insulting yourself."

"Gah, never thought dealing with myself would be a pain."

"Hey, same goes here, besides, who would've thought that I would have a tsundere inside me."

The girl then looks at Shiro with sharp eyes.

"... What?"

"... Nothing. But when you said "inside me"..."

"Oh shit, are you getting turned on... from YOURSELF?"

"W-w-what are you s-saying, I-I'm just pointing out your mistake..."

"Hey, Selfcest isn't good."

"Wh-"

"You might get me arrested for that, you know?"

"But-"

"Do you want us both to get arrested, huh?"

"No, I-"

"Ah, just messing with you. What are you supposed to be, anyway, some sort of, what, perverted tsundere feminine manifestation of me? Hey, I don't mind, but-"

"SHUT IT!" She shouts with an undeniably loud and threatening voice, stopping Shiro's mouth in it's tracks.

"Oookay... never thought I'd be scared of myself... but yeah.. shutting up."

"But you know... you've never really changed all these years... Shiro."

"All these years... huh. You mean you've talked with me before?"

"More than that. I've fought with you before."

"Fought with me... huh?"

"Gah, do I really need to spell it out for you? I'm your sword, Shiro."

"My... sword?"

"Yes. That's why I tried to correct you when you said "inside me." I _tried._ "

"But you said you were a part of me..."

"Indeed I am... When you first held me on that fateful day, a contract was forged. A contract between a swordsman and his sword. The sword would be then be considered as important part of a swordsman's life, sometimes even greater than his own. You could say that's a swordsman's life is his sword. Thus, me being you. Your abilities- they came from me. They are an extension of me. Your time spent practicing them using me allows you to use them, even if I wasn't the sword you were holding, but I am still there."

"Oh, you mean the stances, right?"

"Yeah, you used them earlier for the first time in a couple of years, that's why I woke up know, I've been around for quite a while now, passed down from generation to generation... but you were the only one who truly woke me up."

"W-what do you mean?"

"I do not remember much before my first awakening by you, but all I know was that I had lived my life merely as a weapon. An instrument in war. Repaired once broken, and then sent to the battle once more. However, when _you_ held me... I felt warmth. I was more than just another sword to you... I was your friend. From there onwards, I basked in your warmth, from duels to mere acts with your friends. But after _it_ happened... you...

"Yeah. I remember it now. The promise I made to you." Shiro chuckles. "You know, when I look back at it, it seemed absolutely childish. 13 years old, no doubt. Suffered from a pretty drastic case of chuunibyou. Those times I talked to you... I had dismissed them as delusions."

" _I'll definitely treasure you... no matter what. I will die first before seeing you break, I promise in the name of the great Kurokaze!"_

"Yet I broke that promise... I abandoned you after she... Erika..."

"It's okay, Shiro. Well, you still brought me when you first came in the school, after how many years of NEET life, that is."

"I had disregarded that promise as just another chuuni deal... yet..." Shiro utters, trying his best to hold back tears after remembering the time spent with his sword.

"Like I said... it's okay! Anyway... you haven't forgotten my name, right?"

"Uhh... ehh."

 _Shit. I totally forgot._

"Are you serious!? Well, it's no problem, I never liked the name anyway."

"What was it?"

"Don't mind that old name, come up with a new one for me, right now."

"Eh... uh... Lalatina?"

"Not fitting... Hey, you actually know who this is! Told you I wasn't trying to be Saber."

"Heh, I was just messing with you, that's all. Well, I can't come up with any good names yet. Maybe someday, yeah?"

"Aww... Okay."

"Anyway, can you only communicate with me in dreams? Or can you talk to me casually... or something?"

"I can talk to you whenever, since you've woken me up again, but I won't do it too much, or you'll get distracted."

 _Wait …_

 _Wait just a fucking second..._

"Are you sure this isn't just my excuse for being a fucking chuuni again?"

"Of course not! I exist, you know!"

"Swords don't talk."

"Most of them don't! I'm special, don't you remember! Ah, that's right... you've already dismissed those as chuuni delusions."

"Yeah. And? What was chuuni-me's reason about you being special?"

"It was a secret."

"Oh come on, chuuni-me got lazy and didn't even bother to come up with logically-sound bullshit explanations, huh."

"I'm telling you, I'm real!"

"How is that convincing... This is a dream, right? I'm inside my consciousness."

"Then figure it out when you wake up!"

"I will. And I'll slap myself for even believing for a second that it was real."

"You-"

 _How cute. My sword cannot possibly be this cute. This isn't real._

Just as the girl was about to pounce on him, he gets woken up by a slight shake that slowly increases in intensity,

"-et up... Hey, are you listening? Get up from my bed already!"

"Eh, Hikari-san, isn't it bad to disturb him while he's sleeping?"

"He should do it in his own bed!"

Shiro opens his eyes slowly and stares at Hikari, who is shaking him in an effort to wake him up. He seems to have been rolled up from his face-first position to a back-first one, facing Hikari's flustered face directly.

"How cute." Shiro accidentally lets out.

"W-w-what are you saying, you i-idiot!" Hikari shoves him away, placing him back in his face-first position as his sword rattles from the force. Noticing his blunder, Shiro comes up with an excuse in the short amount of time he has to explain himself while getting up.

 _I messed up, man, I messed up! Calm down... clam down... Ah! I got the right excuse for this one. Bull shit excuse abilities, activate!_

"Sorry. I was sleeptalking."

"A-ah... I-is that so! W-well then! Evict yourself from my bed! Come now, come!" Hikari replies weirdly as she helps Shiro out of her bed with a hint of hastiness. The swordsman rolls out of the bed, walking towards the middle of the room while clutching his sword and placing his left hand on his forehead.

 _More importantly... that dream..._

"Is something wrong... Shiro?" Aya asks, noticing his strange behavior.

"No... nothing." He replies as he unsheathes his katana and visually inspects it, rotating it with his wrist.

 _So... are you going to talk to me or what?_ He utters in his mind, expecting a response.

There was none.

"How cruel..." He sheathes his katana back and proceeds to slap himself with his right hand.

 _And here I was, actually believing that it twas real. Why am I such an asshole to myself, giving myself dreams like that._

"Is there anything bothering you, Shiro? You seem... weird today." Erina asks, a bit concerned as Aya looks on. Shuu is busy as ever, tinkering with his phone, while Hikari is hugging her pillow tightly for some reason...

"No... I'm just sleepy, and had some sort of... weird dream... I guess."

"I see... Don't hesitate to tell us if anything's wrong, okay? We're here for you."

"Yeah, I will." Shiro then sits down on one of the chairs in the middle of the room, still puzzled and pissed.

 _Swords don't talk._

" _Or perhaps, they're simply looking for the right time to talk to you. You don't need to unsheathe me, you know? Keeping me like this is fine. We're connected through our bonds, not my hilt."_

Shirou's eyes were wide open.

And by wide open I mean owl-tier wide open.

He couldn't believe what he just heard.

It's as if he had a voice in his head.

No, not like the silent advice of his conscience.

Like a real, actual, human voice. Telepathy, something like that.

One could describe it as having a hundred dolar gaming headphone inside of your head and calling someone through Skype or Vent.

 _Heh._

He could only utter that small laugh of his.

He was speechless.

He couldn't believe that he was talking with a sword.

His sword.

His perverted tsundere sword.

Now alll he needed was for his sword to somehow be a scientist and he would've already made a microwave time machine.

 _How the hell is this possible?_

" _Through our bonds, of course."_

 _My curiosity tells me that there is some sort of logical explanation behind this._

" _It's called the contract of a swordsman and his sword, Shiro."_

 _No, it must be scientific._

" _Can't help you with that, Shiro. I'm a sword, not a scientist."_

 _Sometimes I wish you were._

" _Why would that be?"_

 _To complete the set._

" _What set?"_

 _The "Makise Kurisu" Set, of course. I thought you'd be able to figure it out._

" _Well, I'm sorry I don't have any time machine theories! Anyways, it's harder to read your mind when you're not inside your I am not a perverted genius!"_

…

" _What?"_

 _Actually you are._

" _You... When you get back to your consciousness..."_

While sitting in his chair, clutching his sheathed sword, Shiro uncontrollably smiles. The rest of the platoon look at him strangely as his thoughts seem to be in another world.

"Is he okay...?" Aya asks Erina, who is also a bit confused.

"I guess... Maybe he just thought of something funny?"

"Or something else." Shuu adds.

All the while, Hikari remains silent as she keeps on hugging her pillow tightly.

"Savoring the sensation, huh." Shuu teases.

"T-that's not it! It's not like it's because of him or anything! I'm just huging it! That's all..!"

"I didn't even say anything about him."

"Wha-" She then proceeds to bury her face in the pillow.

"She's lucky the guy seems to be enjoying himself, otherwise he might've noticed."

"Wouldn't she be happier if he _did_ notice, though?" Aya asks Shuu, a bit puzzled.

"Nah, that's how tsundere-types work. It's a stereotype that I still don't understand why people fall straight right into it. Must be fate. Why can't you just be blunt and confess already?"

"Huh? W-what the hell a-are you talking a-about!?"

"Hey, I didn't say names."

"Kuh..!" She buries her face in the pillow again.

"... see?"

" _You seem to have good friends."_

 _Yeah. Just met them, but they're really nice._

" _Ah, yeah, I hope you've noticed already, but they seem to be weirded out by you smiling for no reason."_

 _Really?_

" _I'm serious, look at them, they're staring at you!"_

 _Oh shit._

" _They probably think you went insane or something. You forgot your composure, are you really that hyped about talking to me?"_

 _Well, if what you said was true, then what's wrong with catching up with a friend? Of course I'm hyped. You went silent... let me guess... "It's not like I-I wanted to talk to you or anything, b-baka" time, right?_

" _Just what do you think of me, exactly, a full-blown tsundere?"_

 _Well.. yeah?_

" _Sheesh, you don't even know your sword that well."_

 _It's exactly because I know my sword well that I can deduce that you're a full-blown tsundere._

" _Ah, whatever! I'll talk to you later, go talk with your friends already!"_

 _Fine._

…

Everyone was staring at Shiro quite intently, trying to find out the reason why he seems to be smiling. And a pretty genuine smile at that.

 _Your glares hurt._

"Uhh... what's up?"

"Dude, you high?" Shuu jokingly asks, bluntly at that.

"No, I'm not... I just... remembered something."

" _What a blatant lie."_

 _Shut up, I'm making excuses here, get back in the sword._

"Anyways, have you guys eaten yet? I seem to have been asleep for quite a while."

"Nope, we just went around the school. Aya worked her final shift at the stall, since she's going to be in the school full-time." Shuu answers.

"I see... So you guys tried out the VCM's yet?"

"I'm doing it right now. First maps seem to be easy, aiming for battleship construction right now. Damn, this is killing my resources."

"Then don't do it, haha."

"But I heard from the network that I need BB's when the time comes that I have to tackle 2-4."

"The network?"

"Yeah, it's like a forum for academy students. Everyone shares fleet compositions and general tips. Apparently I'm the first first-year on it."

"Nice. Everyone should get on it, then."

"Yeah, I'll get as much info as possible, so you guys should go ahead and start the first stages."

"Alright." Shiro then pulls out his VCM, as well as the others, as they sit near eachother in a circular formation on the floor.

Meanwhile at the same time...

Rostock, Germany.

Port of Warnemunde

Naval Base Command Warnemunde – Deutsche Marine

Einsatzflottille 0 - Marine-Spezialoperationen Flottille

Z Program - Versuchsgefäße Projekt

"How's it going, Schneider?" A man, dressed in Deutsche Marine uniform asks one of the men sitting in front of a control system. The system displayed statistics, radar information, and specs.

"Ah, Herr Hans. The vessel is up and ready now. We have refueled and repaired it, as you ordered."

"Good. That boy should be satisfied with this."

"I hope you don't mind me asking, Herr Hans, but who exactly is that... boy?"

"A half-British orphan kid from Berlin. High Command took an interest in him, so he was raised in the academy."

"I see. So that's why you trust him with... this."

"Yeah. Anyways, I heard one of our convoys got sent off track, where are they right now?"

"Vella Gulf. They went off their course towards Yokosuka. They found an abyssal resupply convoy, but that's all we know for now. We lost comms."

"I see... Tell Thacht we're making a pit stop. I need him ready in 24 hours."

"Jawohl."


	6. Ideals, Tsunderes, and Drones?

**Told you guys, didn't I?**

 **Going to write a lot more frequently.**

 **Disclaimer: I suck at relationship development arcs. Mostly because I am seriously awkward as well.**

 **Disclamer (2) : Walls of text inbound.**

 **Slight meta: I thought about this while I was going to sleep after writing the last parts. Please do note that these guys are indeed speaking Japanese. It is written in English because, well, my audience speaks English. Just imagine it's subtitles or something.**

 **More meta : I am a man who cannot walk the path of explosions, nor can I heed the tenets of the Axis sect, for my wish is to protect people, _and then some._**

 **Yes, my tastes are unconventional.**

 **~Idealize**

* * *

Yokosuka Naval Academy / Kaigun Gakuen

Student's Dorm Rooms

Room 401 – Home of the 25th Platoon

1924HRS

Right after having a chat with his peculiar sword, Shiro and the rest of the 25th huddle around in a circle with their VCM's as they work together to clear most of the early maps and unlock the early powerlevelling spots in order to do the event on the easiest difficulty possible, as recommended by the director.

"Shiro, you got Naka yet?" Shuu asks, leading the platoon in terms of advancement as he struggles to clear one of the early obstacles of a first-year– 2-4.

"Not yet." He responds. "What's strange though is that she's supposed to be common, according to the seniors at the network. _Annoyingly common,_ in fact."

"I guess that's the so-called RNG-sama at work. Naka dropped first for me during my search of all the Sendai-class for the third fleet quest."

"So you've done it, huh. Pretty fast, I must say."

 _Looking at this guy, that comes as no surprise... heh, who am I to talk. I'm literally right behind him. Such is the NEET life._

" _Well, at least you know you're a NEET." his sword intervenes in his thoughts._

 _Sheesh. Get back in the sword._

"Yeah, well, third fleet's really helping with my expeditions. I got the second fleet on full-time expedition 2, while I'm sending the third fleet on the recently unlocked ones to continue the chain. The guys at the network have been really helpful, but now I've got another problem..."

"What is it?"

"Unlocking the fourth fleet requires all of the Kongou-class battleships."

"I was expecting you had those girls already, didn't they say it's recommended to have 4BB's and 2CV's when trying out 2-4?"

"That's just bruteforcing it. While sending a light fleet on that cursed map proved to be a clusterfuck, 2 kai'd BB's with an AP day-spotting setup alongside two kai'd CA's with Radar day-spotting and two CV's proved to be quite useful, just that the compass is fucking with me."

… _What._

"How did you get that many ships and good equips in such a short span of time...?"

"Well, first off, let me tell you that I'm almost out of resources and I might be done for the day anytime soon. As you might've guessed, I did some construction and development, and with help from the network guys, I was able to get some AP shells, 2 apparently rare Type 32 surface radars, 2 BB's and even a carrier, and oh, Akagi's a quest reward, so that's one less CV to worry about. Anyways, I got my second carrier Shoukaku, or third if you include my CVL Junyou, then Kirishima, my first and only Kongou-class BB so far, then Yamashiro, a BB that turns into a BBV, apparently trading in firepower for the ability to carry seaplanes. Fair enough for me, I guess. I showed them a screenshot of my base, and they told me to stop construction for a while and keep clearing maps alongside sending out expeditions, especially Exped 2. Levelled my two CA's Haguro and Maya to kai, max modernized most of 'em and here I am."

"You already max modernized most of them? Just how much ships do you already have?"

"You'd be surprised how many Nakas, Nagaras and Kisos drop for me."

… _Seriously?_

"Please give me your luck, Shuu."

"I wish."

After hearing of Shuu's great advancements, Shiro decides t try out construction himself. Entering in a standard Battleship recipe, he closes his eyes and hopes for a Kongou-class, or better yet, A Nagato-class.

He takes a deep breath with his eyes closed as he taps on the confirm button.

He opens those closed eyes and sees the timer.

 _Who are you~?_ He thinks cheerfully, still unfazed by the "saltiness" of the Virtual simulation called KanColle, as stated by the veterans at the network.

He activates the flamethrower, getting even more hyped.

It's...

An Ise.

"Hey, Shuu. Who's... I...se?"

"Ah, Ise. She Kai's into a BBV, so best level her up at the highest map possible. You might also want to set her as FS in PvP battles instead, if you want a less resource-eating method."

"Yeah, I heard PvP gives a lot of EXP. These are just composition battles, right? Not human vs human?"

"Yes, it's just a "clash of equipment and compositions." No human intervention whatsoever, just RNG. Oh, and after you get Ise to Kai, you might want to try out the extra operation 1-5."

"Ah, that submarine-filled map, right?"

"Yeah. Preferred composition according to the network is 1CL or DD, 1DD or CL, 1BBV and 1CVL. Don't overdo it, though, it'll bloat your HQ level, and extra operation maps get harder with a higher HQ level."

"I see, Thanks. You seem to know a lot about this already."

"You can call it game sense. And also the fact that the network guys are helping me a lot."

A small grumble can then be heard. Hikari seems to be frustrated about something.

 _What's wrong with her this time?_

" _I don't know, go check her out, mister 'burden carrier.'"_

 _Damn it, Lalatina._

" _I told you, don't call me that!"_

 _But you looked just like her._

" _That's your fault!"_

 _No, it's yours._

" _You- Ah, whatever, go ask her already, whatever!"_

 _Sheesh. Why is my sword so tsun._

"Hey, Hikari, what's the mater?" Shiro finally asks, after quarrelling with his weapon."

"I'm not sure whether to advance with someone on critical..."

"The hell are you thinking, retreat!" Shiro's voice suddenly goes higher. As if there was anger beneath it.

"B-but if I retreat now, I'll waste the chance of taking out the boss... casualties area acceptable, it's wa-"

"Didn't you hear me, I said retreat!"

"Hey, why are you ord-"

And there, he was triggered.

"Do you have no soul, woman!? Are you willing to throw away someone's life like that!?" Shiro, genuinely angry, exclaims in a large voice, borderline shouting. However, he understands that he's getting too emotional. Hikari merely looks at him with embarassment and shame, along with surprise. She never expected a reaction like this from a usually calm-headed person such as Shiro. He pauses.

"I thought you'd be able to comprehend that fighting with one less ship in your fleet would mean less firepower. Don't expect that you'd be able to take down the boss with five ships. It's better if you retreat, repair, and head back out. You'd only end up... wasting a life." Shiro's last sentence felt heavy, as if it had hit him instead of his intended target.

Flashbacks of Erika ensue. Wasted lives, expended for a failed cause. He never really understood why they'd send a human-crewed vessel into the depths of the abyss, unescorted by shipgirls. Was it a diplomatic move? He'd think to himself for the past few years now. He had already come to the conclusion that the Atago was sent to the abyss for as little reason as to keep appearances. He did not blame the captains and the commanders, who spent most of their careers bowing and apologizing in shame for the blunder. He did not blame director Yashiro, who had shared intrigue with him recently. Rather, he blamed those politicians and higher-ups who dare not even to talk about the incident.

 _Damn it, why am I mixing that up with this! This has nothing to do with that! I shouldn't have just exploded in front of her like that..._ His thoughts suddenly shifted to seriousness that even his sword kept silent throughout this.

"A-ah Hikari, I'm-"

"I'm sorry. I'm already retreating." After a tap on the screen, Hikari immediately drops the VCM and rushes out of room 401. Slamming the door behind her with tears running down, everyone freezes. They stare at Shiro, who is absolutely frozen in place.

 _...Why...?_

… _Why did I do that...?_

 _...What is wrong with me!?_

His sword couldn't even make a remark anymore.

As he prepares to chase after Hikari, Shuu stops him in his tracks.

"Stop. Not yet. Give her some time. Don't think that running out after her will solve everything. Give her an opportunity to think about why you did that, and why you were right to do so."

"..." Shiro just stood there, silent while the two girls left carefully observed the two guys. He finally sits down on Hikari's bunk bed, tapping the pillow that he slept in earlier, which she kept hugging for quite a while. There, everything fell in place. Although he already had an idea about this before, he didn't want to believe it. Although it may sound extremely narcissistic, he had figured it out. He now knew why she reacted so weirdly like that, instead of the generic tsundere "What the hell is the matter with you, i-idiot!"

For the past couple of days, he had played dense.

He knew it.

Yet he lied.

He lied to himself.

He lied to them.

He lied to Hikari.

He did not want to believe it, despite its obviousness.

It was partially because of his awkwardness, but mostly due to the fact that he knows the pain of getting left behind first-hand.

The pain of having lost someone close.

That feeling of desperation.

That feel when someone's gone.

Yes, Miyamoto Shiro is a tormented man.

He did not want to pass that torment to someone else when his time comes.

Thus, he played dense.

He had already offered himself as a sacrificial lamb, to be alone forever, in order to make everyone around him smile.

Because he knew the pain that had tormented him for these past years.

He wanted to bear the pain by himself to save everyone.

Quite the ideal hero of justice.

But that ideal is as flawed as any.

If you want to make everyone happy by being unhappy, you'll only end up doing the opposite.

Everyone would be unhappy.

His ideals weren't going to save everyone.

By the end of his life, he would just drown in his ideals and die.

Alone.

Forsaken.

Blinded by misguided righteousness.

Here, Miyamoto Shiro knew the flaws of his ideals.

He knew of another Shirou's ideals, but never expected it to be so similar.

Everyone has a reason to live and a reason to fight.

If that reason is not for yoruself, then there is no reason for you to continue.

You live for yourself, and through yourself, you'll make everyone happy.

Your smile will make others smile.

Your misery will solve nothing.

That is why Miyamoto Shiro's ideals are meaningless.

At least it didn't take a future version of himself to go back in time and try to kill him to make him understand that.

All it took was a pillow and a dose of Fate.

The best lessons in life can somehow be learned from the unlikeliest of places... like an Eroge VN.

Miyamoto Shiro was in a deep state of thought after grabbing the pillow.

There he knew that his denseness eventually bit him back on his ass.

After jokingly thanking Nasu in his mind, he decides to set things straight.

 _Only main characters can be truly dense._

" _Yeah, right."_

He doesn't even bother retorting his sword.

"Shuu, I'm coming after her."

"Hmm. You've finally noticed, huh. No, I think you've already noticed for a long time. You were trying to lie to yourself."

"Yeah... I guess so."

"Someone oblivious would've followed my advice and given her time, since that would be the best option... for someone who is incredibly dense... But given your reaction... you've definitely noticed it and have made up your mind. I assume you know what to do. Go ahead, my friend."

"Thank you." Shiro remarks as he dashes for the door. He doesn't even bother taking the elevator and rushes straight for the lightly-used stairway, running through the open area and finally reaching the lobby after a couple flights of stairs. Gripping his sword, he scans the area inside and outside the lobby, too awkward to ask the attendants or anyone else. Unbeknownst to him, Tech Director Zura and the school's director Yashiro himself are tracking him through the numerous CCTV's installed around the school.

"Now, I know this kid's probably looking for someone, why doesn't he ask thea ttendant over there, see?" Zura asks Yashiro who is standing right behind him, observing as well.

"That's his weakness. He has a hard time with other people, didn't you read his profile?"

"Hey, I never expected it to be _this_ bad! Why would he bother looking for someone if he has a hard time with other people?"

"Because that someone is probably his squadmate. Scan the CCTV's for any 25th Platoon members."

"Okay." Zura types a few strings of code into the facial recognition system and awaits further information as Shiro is still struggling to find Hikari on the lobby.

 _Damn it. She must've went out or something. Let me try checking the roof._

" _Good choice, Shiro. If she's not there, you can use the place as a vantage point."_

 _That's what I was thinking._

Dashing back to the multiple flights of stairs once more, Shiro ignores the looming fatigue from his limbs and mind as he sets his sights on his goal to find his squadmate, determined to rectify his insensitive mistake stemming from his facade of denseness. He finally reaches the roof, but his feet feel like they're ready to give up anytime. But he disregards it and goes through the last stairway and then finally the arch on the entrance to the roof's restaurant of sorts. The night sky calms him down a bit as his search continues.

 _Where... is she...?_

Meanwhile inside the tech room, Zura's facial recognition system detects a 25th platoon member.

"Got a hit. Ozawa, Hikari. On the roof... There. Four-seated table near the roof's edge."

"Good timing. Looks like he's arrived there as well... See?" Yashiro points at the screen to a certain man with a sword on his waist.

"What do we do now, boss?" Zura asks the director.

"Switch it to screen saver, let's go grab a bite, and let those two kids sort their problems out for themeselves."

"Sounds good to me." he replies as he switches the footage to a bouncing ball and leaves the lightless techroom with Yashiro.

 _Hey... that's her, isn't it?_

" _Yeah, that's her." his sword replies to his thoughts._

 _Good... now... What do I do...?_

" _Wait, you came here not knowing what you were supposed to do? Just apologize to her already!"_

 _Well, yeah, that's what I was planning to do..._

" _Liar."_

 _Sheesh. Let me think already... Got it. I'll just do it nice and simple._

The rooftop is filled with young lovers showing their affection to each other, with the tone set by the beautiful moonlight. Shiro moves past the crowd of lovey-dovey people and moves slowly behind Hikari, who is sipping her mango fruitshake with a straw. Someone was apparently planning on sitting near Hikari, but upon seeing the swordsman he takes a step back and fades into the crowd. Shiro then takes a deep breath and musters the courage to sit down right beside her on the four-seated table, underneath the light of the waxing crescent moon.

"Hey, uh... I'm sorry."

" _Dude, that's so weak."_

 _Shut up, I'm trying my best here, Lalatina._

"It's fine..." Hikari responds. "It's my fault for running out like that, anyway... I shouldn't have made you guys worry. Really, I'm such an idiot." She tries to assure him as she looks down on the the ground, a bit depressed, but Shiro closes his eyes, suddenly makes a bold move and gives her a hug outta nowhere, like a certain wrestler's finisher. With his mind as awkward as ever, he hopes that his warm embrace might prove his genuine apology, even if he really doesn't need to go that far... But Hikari smiles at this gesture, blushing and pretty much happy by now.

"No... I'm the idiot... for many reasons... right?"

" _What the hell is that supposed to mean?"_

 _Come on, let me bask in the moment already, Kurisutina._

" _There's no -tina! Hey, what the hell are you doing with my name! At least decide on one already!"_

 _Fine, Lalatina._

" _Not that one either!"_

 _Please read the mood for me... just this time... please...?_

" _... Alright.. I'll bug you for my name later though!"_

 _Fine, fine._

"Yeah, you are... Idiot." She responds as Shiro ends his awkward embrace.

"See? That's the Hikari I know. Seriously though. I've done a lot of bad things. I really am an idiot, it seems."

"What do you mean by 'bad things'?"

"Well, for starters, I made you cry."

"I-I did not!" She exclaims, although a closer look at her face shows the reddish eyes, definitely cried.

"Your face says otherwise."

"... Maybe just a little bit."

Shiro takes the time to stare at her beneath the moonlight while she looks away in embarassment. She looks like a somewhat shorter Yukinoshita Yukino under these conditions – but less cold and more tsun than ever.

"They say … 'ignorance is bliss.' "

"How is that related?"

"Let me ask you something then... However you interpret it and whether you answer me or not depends on you... Why me?"

She stares at him for a bit, then realizes the question and blushes.

"W-what are you t-talking about?"

"Call me an egoistic narcissist bastard all you want after this, I can take it, but if you can... please, answer the question. Just, why me?"

"I-I don't understand you at all, you idiot!" She responds, definitely trying to evade the questions.

 _Tsun will be tsun, it seems._

" _Yeah."_

 _Including you._

" _Wha-"_

"I guess I'll have to ask you that question some other time then... Too bad... The moon's pretty beautiful tonight, yeah?"

" _... Shiro..."_

 _What?_

" _...Did you just..."_

…

 _OH SHIT._

 _I JUST WANTED TO CHANGE THE TOPIC BY COMPLIMENTING THE MOON AAAAAAAH_

" _Well, I think you two would make for a great cou-"_

 _Nope, that'd be a disaster._

" _Why?"_

 _Because I am an egoistic narcissist bastard who knows nothing but to swing his tsundere sword and fail mathematics 24/7/365. On a more serious note, I don't mind, but I need some time, at least. I may have just known that playing dense isn't the best thing to do, but I just can't go and do stuff like that immediately._

Meanwhile, as he talks to his sword, Hikari is... uncontrollably blushing. It's as if she doesn't know how to react in the situation. Shiro's blunder in words shocked her... and it looks like her identity gimmick of tsundere is falling out.

"W-w-what are you suddenly blabbing about..."

 _Shit, gotta do damage control, damage control!_

…

 _Let's assess the situation, Lalatina._

" _I told you, not that name!"_

 _Let's discuss that later._

 _It seems she does not want to throw her tsundere gimmick away, even if my "confession" was true._

" _It seems so indeed."_

 _What is this, some sort of amateurish fanfiction written by an inexperienced writer?_

" _Hah, just imagine, your fate being in the hands of an beginner. What could possibly go wrong...?"_

 _Everything. Well, if I go along with the flow, I should be able to get out of here a single man._

" _Why don't you want to be with her?"_

 _Because I already said it earlier... Also..._

" _Also what?"_

 _I want to get to know her a bit more._

" _I see."_

 _Well, I'm off. Hope this works._

"I was just complementing the scenery, what's wrong, Hikari?" Shiro utters with the straightest face he can manage.

"Ah, eh... nothing, yeah." She looks away, looking pretty cute, at that. Shiro can't help blushing.

…

" _Shiro..."_

 _I know. I can't help it._

"S-shall we go back, then, S-Shiro? Our f-food should've been delivered q-quite a while ago..."

"Y-yeah... can't expect E-Erina to treat us again t-this time..." They both awkwardly laugh, as they head down back to the dorm rooms.

…

" _Oi, keep yourself together, you're being too obvious!"_

 _I can't help it, okay? I've just felt the recoil of everything I've said!_

Even in the elevator, their awkwardness reaches no bounds. Nothing but catchy elevator music fills the airwaves as they wait for it to arrive on their floor while they turn their heads slightly away from eachother out of embarassment and sheer awkwardness.

" _Shiro... this feels like some lovers quarrel or something."_

 _Shut up, Lalatina._

Ding.

The elevator arrives at the fourth floor, and awkwardness reaches up the eleven when Shiro couldn't ven open the door for Hikari without blushing uncontrollably. This is where Shiro's confidence fades and the full blunt of the recoil of everything he said is being felt. Even the sight of a single strand of hair triggers uncontrollable blushing for both parties. As they enter the room, silence ensues, and Hikari enters the bathroom.

"Shiro... what did you do?"

"Trust me, you wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me."

"I'll tell you later when the dust settles."

"Good enough for me... well then, let's get back to the grind."

 **Meanwhile in Rostock, Germany...**

The man known as Hans sits in the middle of Warnemunde port's logistics center, surrounded by various machinery and operators operating operations, only separated by four corners of glass that makes up his office. Reading some documents in his table, he begins to think about the European Theater of Operations in this Abyssal War.

The once civillian port was seized by the nearby Naval Base in order to allocate more space for naval operations. Franco-German coalition agreements have made it possible for both parties to dock in their ports, making exchange of vessels and technologies easier. Blohm & Voss, Germany's largest shipbuilding company have also began the production of their own shipgirls with assistance from Japan. Through risky technological exchanges made by cargo ships, the former allied nations have banded together once more to become the pioneers of shipgirl engineering, even the Italians got their slice of the Shipgirl project recently, and there are now reports about American and Russian projects underway.

"Looks like we're going to win this, after all..." he mumbles to himself in straight Deutsch.

The door of his glass-covered office opens.

"Sir. You called?" Someone wearing a similar uniform to Hans asks in English this time.

"Yes, Captain Thacht. I'd like to brief you on the Queen Anne's endurance trip. It seems I have to tell you this personally."

"Please, just call me Shade, sir."

"... You really like that name, huh."

"Well, _you guys_ did decide on it..."

"I wasn't there when they saved you at Normandy."

"But High Command did ask everyone to submit suggestions, right? I asked Raeder about it."

"Raeder, huh. Well yeah, we sent our name suggestions..."

"So, what did you want to name me as?"

"Honestly I would've liked to call you Jeriko or something. But Donitz and the 13th just had to pick Shade since it sounded cool..."

"Well, with respect sir, Shade _does_ sound a lot cooler."

"Let's get on with the briefing already."

"Okay."

Hans hands over an envelope to Shade and he begins to read the contents.

"As you can see, this is the final test of the experimental vessel Queen Anne's Revenge II... Why the hell did you name it like that, anyway?"

"Just look at my surname, sir."

"Hey, I always thought it was spelt as Teach, you know."

"If you look at historical records you can see tha-"

"Never mind that, let's continue. The Q.A.R – Part of the Versuchsgefäße Projekt, better known as the Z Program. That old bastard Raeder didn't want to fully rely on the Shipgirl program, and I believe he has good reason why not."

"Why?"

"Well, most of our first ships are going to Japan anyway as part of the contract. Blohm & Voss didn't even bother to negotiate for lenient terms in exchange for the riggings blueprints... Two destroyers, and even Bismarck and Prinz Eugen have already been sent out to them... and there was another one inbound..."

"What happened to her?"

"Well, she was onboard the fleet that got stuck at Vella Gulf... That's what I'm going to talk to you about."

"Okay."

"Let me just..." Hans grabs a paper from his desk's drawer and prepares to read it aloud.

"Okay... here we go. Q.A.R Mk. II Endurance Test is a go. The Q.A.R Will be loaded with the default loadout of SKC 155mm guns alongside it's complement of Phalanx CIWS and ASROCs. As one of the goals of the Versuchsgefäße Projekt, the Artificial Intelligence module installed on the Q.A.R will be modified to include an emotion emulator. Crew of the Q.A.R are asked to take good care of the ship. Personnel involved would be Flottenadmiral Hans Lindemann, Captain Shade Thacht, SMS Kaiser and KMS Scharnhorst. Route taken is stated on the map. First half will be the Germany-Australia-Japan route. Second half will be the Japan-Hawaii-America route. Final route will be a straight shot to the UK then finally France."

"They're really confident about the Q.A.R, huh. What about the abyssals, then?"

"This is where the stealth function of the Revenge will be tested. If not, we'll blast through them with the 15's and let them eat metal hell."

"Will we be really okay, sir? I don't think the Queen Anne can survive through tons of abyssals. The last sortie proved that..."

"Nah, it can. Armor's got improve, stealth is tweaked to the max. As long as we don't go full retard and shoot at abyssals, we should be fine... hopefully. Besides, we have Shipgirl escorts."

"About that, sir... how will we refuel and repair them? This is going to take quite a while, even with the Queen Anne's speed and large fuel capacity."

"High Command was kind enough to give us a few buckets."

"Ah, those things... how do they even work, anyway?"

"Those mixtures of pure green stuff contain nanomaterial particles that patch up riggings. Dump it into the girls' riggings while they take a bath and we should be set."

"These girls get shot everyday... it's a miracle they get through it with just torn clothes."

"Well, the riggings protect them, literally. When they wear the riggings, they are covered with a coat of nanomaterials that are invisible to the naked eye. The riggings can repair themeselves to a certain extent, but most of its nanomaterial contents are spent on protecting the girls instead, which is why it takes a long-ass time to repair the riggings without buckets... Being a dock engineer is tiring work."

"Well... is that all, sir?"

"Yeah. We'll move tomorrow. Also, I forgot to mention, we will go to Vella Gulf and recover those guys ourselves."

"... I don't recall that's in the plan..."

"It's not, though I already got Raeder's permission. Get some rest and prepare to move out tomorrow. Dismissed."

"Jawohl." he salutes and leaves.

 **Back at the Academy...**

Everyone else except Shuu and Shiro are asleep after a tough day of grinding. It's 0137 hours, but they don't mind. Both men are stuck on 2-4.

"Well... Looks like I can't do anything anymore except send expeditions. How're you doing, Shiro?" Shuu asks.

"Well, after doing 1-5 I finally got Naka... but that's about it. I still need 3 more Kongou-classes. 2-4 is a pain in the ass..."

"I agree. Well, I got Haruna now, so I only need 2 more Kongou's... But my resources are down so I'm sending my second and third fleets to good expeds."

"My second and third fleet are on exped 2 and 5 right now... but I don't think I can keep up with the 30-minute exped while I'm sleeping."

"Too bad we haven't unlocked those long expeds yet. My network contacts say they're good while you're sleeping."

"Just signed up for the network today. I see why you know lots of things now, they're suprisingly helpful..."

"Yeah, and if you ever get bored, just drop by at the chat thread."

"You sound like a regular already."

"Well, I'll head off to sleep then... it's 1am already."

"Oka- Wait what!?"

"Don't you have a clock or something at the docks screen?"

"Yeah, I see it... but I think I forgot to look at it..."

"We have class tomorrow... so... let's get as much rest as we can, then... but before that, tell me about what you and Hikari talked about."

"You're curious, huh."

"I am a member of the squad, as a squad, we must look after each other, no?"

 _He's got a point..._

"Well, yeah. So here's how it went..."

He explains everything from start to finish as he sits on Hikari's bed just beside her who's sleeping. Shuu can't help but laugh at some point.

"No offense, man, but that sounds too cliche'd... But honestly, I would've done the same."

Shiro yawns. "We should sleep now..."

"Aight."

Both proceed to their beds and prepared to sleep, but Shiro remembers something.

 _Oi, Lalatina._

…

 _Lalatina?_

…

 _I guess swords sleep too, huh. I'll talk to you tomorrow then._

With that being said, he begins to close his eyes and falls to a deep sleep.

" _I won't force you into your consciousness since you have class tomorrow and it's late."_

 _Uh, right... Thanks, Lalatina._

" _No problem- Hey, think of a proper name next time, okay!?"_

 _Can't I just call you Lalatina? I've gotten... used to it._

" _But I haven't!"_

 _Alright, I'll think of a name for your sword form itself... but I'll keep calling you Lalatina in my head._

" _...Fine."_

 _Thanks, Kurisutina._

" _There's no -tina! And don't just keep calling me by other names! Lalatina was already fine!"_

 _See?_

" _You sly bastard!"_

 _Don't call me that, my assistant._

" _Since when did I become your assistant!?"_

 _Bring forth the drink of intellectuals- the Doctor Pepper!_

" _Go sleep already!"_

 _...Fine. But I'll be satisfied knowing that in some other worldline you have red hair and also my assistant._

" _Don't get your hopes up."_

 _A man can dream, Lalatina._

" _Then start sleeping!"_

And before he knew it, after just closing his eyes for what seemed like a moment, his phone played Bandit Radio.

It was already 0430.

 _Note to self... don't sleep too late ever again._

"Hey, you gonna go for some rounds again?" Shuu asks, already awake and fully bathed, clearly seen through his wet hair dressed in a jacket and jogging pants.

"...Yeah." Shiro replies sleepily as he grabs a choice of clothes, a towel, and heads off towards the bathroom.

"Aight then. I'll wait for you."

After quite a while as Shuu keeps tinkering with his VCM, Shiro finally emerges, dressed in a blue-and-white Addidas tracksuit with matching pants.

"Alright, let's move out."

"... You look like a Slav."

 _Now that I look at it... I think so too._

"Uh.. ehh... Cyka blyat?"

"A nu cheeki breeki iv damke." Shuu jokingly replies.

"Get outta here, Stalker."

"Enough references, shall we go, Ivan- uh, Shiro?"

"Okay, Vladm- Shuu. Davai davai!" Both laugh as they rush through the door.

After a couple hours of jogging and laughs, it was already 0630. They stop by the same vending machine and buy themeselves some water. During this time, Shiro squats and looks towards the clock tower.

 _I should go there sometime._

" _For what reason?"_

 _No particular reason._

Shuu notices the squatting swordsman holding his water bottle like how one would hold a vodka bottle.

"... Hey gopnik, let's go."

"Blyat, fine."

They return from the trackfield and began suiting up with their academy standard uniforms, the white suit with golden ornaments, almost the same as an actual admiral's uniform, complete with shouldercaps. Most of the platoon is still asleep, so both men get back in their VCM's and started re-sending expeditions and doing some light sorties for their dailies. 

"... RNG why you do this..." Shuu comments. "Were my Naka scrap sacrifices not enough to appease you?"

"Well, it is RNG after all."

"I'm going to have to continue to let my resources recover, I can't do this with like 500 RSC's left."

"Go ahead, I'm just constructing stuff here."

"What do you want to get right now?"

"A Kongou."

"Same here..."

"One of the guys I met at the network when I first registered said that Kongou is going to be the least of my problems when I head on to world 3... She's going to be common as hell, so much that everyone can hastily max modernize their ships with the amount of Kongou-classes they get..."

"I got that too when I asked them... but it's hard to say whether it's true when we're not even there yet."

"We'll see soon enough." Shiro yawns as he says this.

More hours pass, the other members wake up and take their bath, and it seems Hikari still hasn't recovered from last night's incident. Shiro tries his best to act natural as all the members started preparing to go to the school building with their backpacks in tow.

 _Back to school, huh. Hopefully none of the useless crap this time._

" _Oh, hey. Morning, Shiro."_

 _Good morning to you too, Lalatina._

" _I'm not even going to bother. So, have you decided on my proper name yet?"_

 _Not yet._

" _Ah, come on! How long will it take!"_

 _Do you want me to rush it with a crap name? Give me some time and I'll make sure you won't regret it._

" _... You have a point... fine then."_

 _Alibi and Excuse skills level up!  
_

" _Hey, I heard that!"_

 _Ay, blin..._

The 25th finally reach the academy's main building. They enter it and see the first-floor cafeteria and reception area, alongside some bathrooms. Going up the stairway to the second floor, they see the faculty room on the middle and the first year rooms on the hallway to the right, while the second year rooms are on the left. Shiro looks up to the huge circular mosaic near the roof of the building, resembling the red Rising Sun – The naval ensign of the JMSDF. Noticing him stop for a bit, Aya calls him out.

"Ah, Shiro... we'll be late, so hurry up..."

"Yeah, Shiro, let's go." Erina adds.

"... Idiot." Hikari meekly utters.

"You heard them, let's go."

And they proceeded to the classrooms, looking at the names set on a paper right next to the doorways of each room. Shuu notices his name, so he calls out everyone. Upon closer inspection, it appears the entirety of the 25th platoon is assigned to the same room -

Section Yokosuka.

"Sounds nice, looks like we're all in here, huh." Shuu comments.

"Yeah. It's convenient we're in here together, honestly." Shiro responds.

"What, so you can copy Hikari's math answers?"

"Well, the fact that we can communicate easier and well... yeah, that. I assume you guys will help me out, right?" Shiro asks, looking straight at Hikari whilst trying to maintain a straight face as much as possible.

"Ah- well, I guess it can't be helped! I'll have to help this idiot out then! It is the obligation of one with knowledge, of course!" She laughs. Shiro smiles.

 _I hope last night is behind us, then._

"Hey, let's sit down close together, alright? The 25th platoon should stick together, yeah?" Erina recommends.

"Of course. Let's go in." The swordsman responds and they head inside the room together. The seats were arranged with five chairs stretching out towards the back, and three chairs for each row before a slight space for passage. Some seats were already taken, so they chose the five seats in the back area. Erina takes the leftmost seat in the second-to-the-last row, positioned near the back door with Aya right behind her on the last leftmost chair. Hikari sits on the middle chair, right next to Erina. Shiro, out of awkwardness, decides to sit behind her, right next to an unknown classmate, but Shuu sees this and overtakes him, sitting on his intended chair while giving off a smirk.

 _I'm not even mad... well played..._

Shiro is then forced to sit down right next to Hikari as the latter noticably blushes a bit. Shuu takes out his VCM and begins retrieving and sending expeditions once more as the unknown person beside him looks on.

"Ehh, you have Sendai already...?" The new classmate asks.

"Yeah, it was tough farming for her class, but it was worth it. Name's Shuu, by the way. Nagumo Shuu. Call me Raku if you want. Looks like I'll be your seatmate for this year."

 _Heh, looks like he doesn't spare anyone from that nickname, huh._

"Ah, my name's Ayato. Sagiri Ayato. Nice to meet you."

"Ayato, huh. Which platoon are you in?" Shuu asks, in the mood to talk.

"Time to see if playing VN's and talking in forums really does help." he says to himself.

"I'm in the 13th platoon, you?"

"25th. These are my mates." He looks to Shiro and the others.

"I see, well, let's have a good year then..." Ayato utters.

"Yeah." Shuu replies.

"Well I guess it did help..." he says to himself again.

As the students inside the room mingle with eachother, a tall man, dressed in a very formal suit-and-tie enters the classroom, carrying with him an envelope with some papers. His loud footsteps echoed through the room despite the noisy background, forcing the students to silence themeselves as they noticed the teacher-like figure with a strict aura. The man looks towards the students and feels a bit depressed.

"Why does this happen every year... Do I seriously look strict...?" he mumbles to himself.

He then takes a seat on the teacher's table, putting down his envelope and facing the students.

"Welcome to the Kaigun Gakuen... Why does the air feel so tense... Anyways, I'm Nakabachi Shinzo, and I will be your homeroom teacher from here on out. Oh, right." He then writes his name on the whiteboard with erasable marker.

 _It's so tense in here..._

"Why is everybody so silent? Am I really that scary or something? I won't take it as an insult."

 _He doesn't know how scary he looks in that suit? He looks like he could suspend us all for looking outside the room!_

"Well... this happened last year as well, but we got along after the middle of the year... so I can't say I'm surprised by the reaction... Well then, let me start by calling you out individually then..." He starts rummaging through his paper envelope. "Ah, here it is! Now, when I say your name, please stand up."

After a couple of minutes of full-name calling, the room finally falls to silence again.

"Fools, said I, you do not know..." Shinzo started singing to himself, in good English, at that, as the silence fell and he began inserting the papers back in the envelope. It wasn't too loud, but was loud enough that Shiro could hear it.

"...silence like a cancer grows..." Shiro instinctively sang along to one of the classic songs he found catchy. That, and all the Vietnam war classics grew on him as he watched documentaries about it. He sang it with an almost perfect accent, no doubt, but the problem was...

He sang it too loudly.

The entire room heard it.

"Who was that?" The homeroom teacher asked. The students thought he was angry, but in reality, he was excited at the thought that someone knows the song. As he inquired, the entirety of the 25th platoon pointed at Shiro.

 _HOW COULD YOU SELL OUT YOUR PLATOON MEMBER LIKE THIS...!_

"Nothing to be ashamed of, mate. You have a good voice." Shuu teases as he taps on Shiro's shoulder. Most of the students laugh as they hear this.

" _He's right, you know."_

 _Shut up, Lalatina!_ He retorts as his sword's laugh resonates in his mind. He stares down to his feet in embarassment. Hikari looks on pretty intently as well.

"Your friend's right, that was a good singing, kid... I'm surprised you know the song."

"I've always been a fan of the classics, sir..."

"Then you have good tastes, kid. See? We're talking! Come on guys, don't be shy, talk to me about anything! We don't have anything to do in homeroom for now, we're just waiting for an announcement."

"What announcement, sir?" One of the students asks.

"Finally, we're warming up, eh? Well, today, the schoolwide Capture-the-Flag event will happen!"

 _Capture-the-Flag...?_

"In case you're wondering, you didn't expect orthodox teaching styles, did you? Well, there are some classes like those like boring-ass Linguistics, but for the most part, events like this will suddenly happen. Today is the icebreaker event for the second and first years, and the faculty has decided on a friendly CTF match to kick things off, then the next ones will be decided on the spot. The director will explain it better in the field of battle. So be prepared! Get excited! Feel the hype!"

 _He sounds like he's going to be participating as well, haha._

" _You never know, maybe he will..."_

 _Oh shit, you're right. That'd be scary._

"Uhh... sir? Where will it take place?" One of the students asks.

"Where? The school campus, of course!"

"Ehh!?" The students exclaim in unison.

"The school shall become the field of battle! Buildings will be garrissons! Rooms will become forts! Cafeterias will become command posts! Anything is possible." Shinzo cheerfully explains.

" **Mic.. check.. eh, is this thing on? Zura, get over here, you lazy bum... Stop playing that ecchi human-cat game thing whatever and start fixing stuff."** The speakers blare as some of the students laugh.

" **Who're you calling lazy, by the way, it's not Zura, it's Katsura!"**

" **You wish. Now get over here and fix this thing."**

" **Uh.. It's already on, Yashiro."**

" **Ay, damn it. Thanks anyway. Wait a sec... did they hear everything?"** The students laugh even more as they hear this.

" **Apparently they did, _Director._ "**

" **Damn. Well then. Nevermind all that. Students of the Kaigun Gakuen, please be prepared for rapid deployment. First-year students will proceed to Gymnasium 1 for equipment loadouts, Second-years will proceed to Gymnasium 2 for their own equipment loadouts. Everything else will be explained and clarified later on. Now, go forth and carve victory in the dawn's horizon!"**

" **Hey, Yashiro, doesn't that line sound way too cheesy?"**

" **Shut up, we've been using that line for a few years now."**

" **Sounds like a Jump manga thing."**

" **Don't complain, it sounds cool. Oh crap, I forgot to turn this off... … Please proceed to your stations."**

 _Are those two klutzes or what?_

"You heard him. Go on." Shinzo gives permission and the students start moving out of Section Yokosuka, along with students from other sections. Around 100+ first-years began to move towards the first gymnasium to pick up their loadouts, while the rest of the students, the second years, head out to the farther Gymnasium 2, which is probably on the other side of the campus.

 _I don't even know where the first or second gymnasium is. Man, I love going with the flow._

" _This is where you're going to study and you don't know the locations? Wow. Best student ever. 10/10."_

 _Lalatina, please..._

The sliding doors of the gymnasium open as the crowd of students go in, and they encountered a mass array of white-colored weapons ranging from handguns to full-blown anti-materiel sniper rifles, probably polymer replicas, marked with an orange lines finish as some sort of decoration or symbol., neatly placed on shelves, cabinets, and racks.

 _Just how much funds are going into this school, anyway..._

"Ladies and Gentlemen... Welcome... to the Arsenal." The director exclaims, emerging from the shadows of the dimly-lit gymnasium. "Feel free to pick anything, we have lots of stockpiled weapons here. Magazines and equipment are on the other side. Make sure to only carry what you can."

 _Lets see... There are some nice-looking guns in here, problem is... I don't know how to shoot them..._

"Having a hard time, kid?" The director asks, right behind Shiro.

"Well, I don't actually know how to shoot these... so..."

"You should use what you already have experience with. Here." The director grabs a revolver from one of the shelves and hands it to Shiro.

"Colt Python .357. Packs a good punch, but packs huge recoil as well, but if I recall correctly, you used this against Ozawa. Well, in any case, once you master this gun, you can shoot any handgun out there... well, maybe except the .500 Raging Bull... that might break your wrist. Anyway, just don't try to go Saeba Ryo on this gun, since you're a beginner do try to shoot it two-handedly. They may be polymer replicas, but the weight and recoil were made to be the same."

"Thank you, sir." He graciously accepts. 

"Also, here's something you might be trying to find." The director grabs something from the bottom shelves and pulls out a sheath with the waistbelt containing a polymer replica of a katana, made to look just like a real one, except with some orange marking designs.

"I took the liberty of measuring your katana during the opening duels. This should be the same size and weight of your current sword. It uses the same technology as shock batons and the shock knives, so feel free to stab, slash, and thrust. Nobody's going to get hurt, they'll just get shocked. And maybe you'll have the honor of saying 'You wa shock!'"

"I wish..." Shiro tries out the polymer sword and hoists it just below Lalatina, in the optimal Wakizashi position.

" _Hey, don't ever think of replacing me, okay!"_

 _Of course not, Lalatina. You'll be my sword forever._

" _T-that... m-makes me happy..."_

 _I'm sure it does..._

" _Really, it does!"_

 _Yeah, yeah._

"Pro tip, kid, you're going to need an automatic for this one. You probably can't do anything good without one."

"I don't know how to shoot one properly..."

"Then consider this your baptismal of fire. Choose anything you like."

Staring at the guns in the shelves for quite a while, Shiro finally makes up his mind to choose the black-colored scoped assault rifle on the top right of the shelf, thinking that the scope attachemnt would help him with his aim a bit. He grabs it and visually inspects it by twisting it around with his wrist, looking at the fine details of the magazine-less AR.

"Ah, the SG 553. The result of a threesome between the Galil AR, AK-47, and the AWP. It's real-life companion doesn't enjoy the same stopping power the AK-47 has, but instead excels in the fact that it can pierce through even the toughest of kevlar vests out there. It's accurate when you use it properly, but the recoil might prove to be a problem in sprays, so fire it in semi mode or in short, controlled bursts."

"Okay then." He swings the sling around his neck and lets it hang freely as he grasps it firmly and tries out the scope.

"By the way, if you're done picking out your weapons you can head out to the equipment and ammunition section." the director announces as some of the students move on to the said section.

"These are your suits for today.

Transparent visor shock-helmets with built-in comms. These shut down once the system detects too much volts taken in.

Then we have these shock-armor battle jackets with gloves and ammo vests alongside shock-armor battle pants. They'll suddenly become heavy once they've taken enough voltage to simulate wounds or death.

Next up, we have the shock-armor combat boots, same deal, once they get shot, they'll suddenly become as heavy as a rock, your feet will be numbed, and you'll have to drag it to simulate foot wounds.

If your helmet takes too much damage- represented by volts, then all of the shock-armor sets will shut down, and you will be considered dead until you are brought back to your own camp, where your shock-armor sets will be reset, and you're free to fight again until the enemy flag is taken.

For your ammunition, you have shock-mags, each containing bullets charged with a non-lethal amount of voltage. The voltage will be picked up by your suits, which will calculate the extent of penetration, location, and damage, and then modify it's weight according to those values. Once you've taken enough voltage, your suit will shut down and you will be rendered immobile unless carried back to base by your mates. For melee weapons, they are essentially dull shock batons, so feel free to stab, slice, cut, thrust, etcetera. It will only shock your target.

Lastly, we have the grenades. We currently have three types of grenades, each student can carry one of each upon arrival and revival.

The first one is the standard HE grenade. These grenades work like RADARs, they'll calculate the distance upon detonation, and send in signals with varying data depending on the distance of a person. If you're too close upon detonation, then your suit will shut down altogether, I mean, lets face it, who survives a close range nade explosion? If you're a bit far, you might suffer light damages or sustain some wounds, ultimately depending on your distance from detonation. They are used by pulling the pin, releasing the handle, and throwing it as far as you can. Note that this thing does NOT identify friend or foe, so there may be friendly fire caused by this nade, so be careful. It also has mini-speakers which plays an explosion sound whenever it is triggered, which is also sent to your comms which will echo-play explosion sounds depending on your location from said detonation.

The second grenade is the smoke grenade. It's exactly as it says. It releases a smokescreen which last for 60 seconds.

The last grenade is the flashbang. Like the HE, it sends signals whose data depends on your location, but instead of all of the shock-armor sets, it only sends the data to your combat helmet. Since we can't afford too many actual flashbangs, these things send signals which trigger a "whiteout" of your combat visor and the flashbang sound effect on your comms. The duration and intensity depends on your location and whether or not you were looking at it directly.

That's it for grenades. There are also an assortment of scopes here which snipers may find useful.

Anyway, for platoon leaders, may I ask that you assign a field medic and a logistics officer. Post your platoon number and your designated Medic and Logistics officers on the designated thread on the network.

To give a bit of a background, logistics officers will work with other logistics officers to give their platoon's ground units a clear view of their environment. These officers will inform the units of any enemy infantry units, intercepted messages, and any intel. Logistics officers may set up anywhere they like, but they may be compromised by enemy troops as well, so they must also be wary of their own surroundings. These officers will be given access to multiple drones which they can use for scouting, but they may also be intercepted by enemy drones as well, so they will also fight a battle for air superiority. Drones cannot attack ground units, only other enemy drones.

 _First guns and complicated suits... then over-the-top gear and grenades... now drones? Who the hell is funding this place?_

Field medics will rescue wounded and downed allied units while being supported by the intel from logistics officers, but medics may find themeselves participating in combat, so they will also carry guns with them as well. Medics are very important for the continuation of the war effort. If all of the year-level's units are down, then they will lose, even if the flag has not been captured. Medics can help wounded soldiers, but most of the time, it is better to deliver them straight back to home base."

"Well that's about it, I guess." the director ends. "Your starting position will be the dorms area. Flag placement is up to you guys, so decide on it. I will not spill the beans on where the second years will be. It will be up to your scouting abilities and the ability of the logistics officers to be effective with their drones and interceptions. Once you guys are ready, head to the lobby. We'll be observing through the cameras. The battle will start once we announce it. Good luck, kids."

"Yes sir." They respond in unison before going back to scouring the place. Shiro picks up 5 SG-553 magazines and 5 Python speedloaders alongside the standard three grenades before he signals his platoon to huddle up for a quick meeting.

"Alright. I've thought about it and I think I have a good idea for who would be our Logistics guy and Field medic. Aya, do you accept being a field medic? I just thought it would be a great match for you."

"O-of course! If it's what you say... captain."

 _I don't remember when I became captain._

"So, who'll play logistics, captain?" Erina asks.

"Wait wait, when did _I_ become the captain here?"

"Well, you seem good at... playing the part." Hikari responds.

"She recommended it." Shuu teasingly adds.

"Hey-"

"Well, I'm honored to be the captain, then. Shuu, logistics is fine for you, right?"

"As much as I would like to run around the school carrying a gun and shooting people, I'd be fine with being logistics."

"Thanks. Erina, me, and Hikari will be the main ground units for the 25th then. Shuu, get us updated as much as possible. Aya, don't just focus on us if ever we get hit, go help out the other platoons too."

"Alright."

"O-okay!"

 _What am I feeling right now..._

" _Pride, it seems."_

 _Hey, for once you make sense now, Lalatina._

" _What's that supposed to mean, huh?"_

 _N-nothing much..._

"Guys... Thanks in advance for this wonderful opportunity to work with you."

"Shiro, you sound like you're about to die." Shuu remarks.

"I'm not dying here. Not until I fulfill my promise."

"Stop pulling death flags everywhere, man."

"Alright, alright. Let's suit up then. But first let me just post your names..." He pauses as he types the form in on the designated thread at the network, substituting the placeholder text for Shuu and Aya's names. Clicking "submit", he places the VCM inside his ammo vest and prepares to move out. "Okay. Let's do this."

The 25th platoon then began to take the Shock-armor suits from the ordered shelves and wore the armor suits over their uniforms, somehow fitting in nicely for all sizes. Re-hoisting his sword after taking it off, Shiro does the final tweaks to his armor, and then finally rejoins the rest of the platoon as they rendezvous towards the dorm building. The majority of the first-years decided that the flag should be placed on the dorm's basement kitchen, to lessen the risk of an enemy infiltration. Afterwards, the last of the students reach the dorms, and everyone was nervously prepared for a fun ride.

" **Ehem, ehem. Looks like everything is in order on both sides except for the Logistics stuff now... In order to clear things up, Field Medics and Logistics Officers will have to set up somewhere where they think is safe. Buidlings are no exception, anything is possible. We've linked up the drones to the respective officer's VCM's. The first year's control computers should already be there right now, so, the 27 officers of each platoon should take one and set them up."**

A truck arrives, carrying an entire rig of monitors and CPU's – 27 of them. It took a few more minutes for them to set up on the dorm room's basement, just beside the flag, but it was finally done. They've hooked up their VCM's to the control computers, the mics were set up, and everything was underway.

The lines of vanguard first-years were more than eager to charge towards the enemy lines. Shiro was no exception. He had grasped his SG-553 firmly for quite a while now, Erina also seemed hyped with her Nova Pump and compact G36c at the ready, While Hikari wanted to try out some long-range shots with her CheyTac Intervention and the classic M1911. The others were carrying weapons ranging from AK-47's with bayonets to Zastava Black Arrows... They looked like they could just run towards the enemy at any time...

" **A little birdy told me that everything's good now. Okay. There are 27 platoons, made up of five members in the first-year level. The second-years have 23 platoons, made up of five members also. With a deficit of 20 members, the second-years are at a handicap. Will experience stand tall, or will the first-years pull through? We shall find out... in 3... 2... 1...**

 **Carve victory in the dawn's horizon!"**

 _Well.. here goes nothing..._


End file.
